Husband quizzed over wife’s murder

THE husband of a murdered mother-of-two, arrested yesterday in connection with her death, was released without charge from custody last night.

He had been questioned about his wife’s death for 12 hours.

“A full murder investigation is still underway and a file on the three people arrested is being prepared for the DPP,” a garda source said.

Joe O’Reilly, who has publicly denied killing his 30-year-old wife Rachel, was taken to Drogheda Garda Station.

He walked free at 10.30pm last night and declined to comment.

Ms O’Reilly was killed at the home she and her husband shared with their two sons, Adam, four, and Luke, three, at Naul, north Co Dublin, on October 4.

Mr O’Reilly’s arrest came 24 hours after a man and a woman were picked up by detectives. Both are suspected of withholding information and are known to Mr O’Reilly. They were released last night.

Mr O’Reilly, 32, was arrested at his home around 10.20am yesterday and taken to Drogheda. Detectives from the National Bureau of Criminal Investigation interviewed him.

Gardaí have not found the murder weapon or towels taken from the scene and believed used by the killer. Potential forensic evidence was also tainted because there were people on the scene before gardaí.

Mr O’Reilly was arrested under Section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act and had his period of detention extended yesterday afternoon on the orders of the area Chief Superintendent. Under the act a suspect can be held for six hours and then a further six hours.

Ms O’Reilly was found beaten to death in the bedroom of her home on October 4. She was killed after she returned from dropping her sons at crèche and school. The alarm was raised when she failed to pick them up in the afternoon. Her mother Rose Callely found the body. She alerted her son-in-law.

In an interview on the Late Late Show, she said she will never forget the scene. Rachel had a horrific death, said Ms Callely.

Mr O’Reilly was also interviewed and he said he believed his wife was killed by someone she knew.

On Tuesday morning, a 43-year-old man and a 35-year-old woman were arrested at addresses in Ballyfermot and Dundrum.