Mystery American woman identified

THE mystery woman who walked into a Garda station last week with suspected amnesia has been identified as a US citizen.

She is understood to have a psychiatric illness and last night was being treated in the Mater Hospital.

The 42-year-old’s mother has been contacted by gardaí after an appeal that lasted a week.

The search for the woman’s identity began last Sunday week when the well-dressed lady walked into Store Street Garda Station. She was carrying a Chihuahua dog in her arms and asked to speak to an officer at the station.

Gardaí quickly established the woman had no clue as to her identity or where she had come from.

She spoke with a North American accent and had a number of distinctive tattoos on her body.

After her picture was released through the media to the public last week and contact made with a number of embassies, gardaí made a breakthrough in the mystery case.

A man came forward to say he had travelled on the same flight from the US with the American woman.

It had been suspected that she had got off a plane in Dublin after travelling from JFK Airport in New York.

A second passenger later came forward and gave details about travelling with her.

Gardaí trawled through passenger check lists and after consultation with US authorities managed to contact the mystery woman’s family in California. The woman is expected to be reunited with her mother.

Sources close to the identity inquiry case yesterday described it as a “sad” case and said the woman had psychological difficulties.

She was being treated at the Mater Hospital’s psychiatric unit in Dublin last night.

When contacted the US embassy said it was “working on the case” but would not comment further.

The Garda press office said: “The matter is now being handled by the United States Embassy and medical personnel.”