Four men questioned in hammer attack case

GARDAÍ have questioned four people after a man in his 30s was hit in the head with a hammer during a row in a Cork suburb.

The men, who range in age from their late teens to early 20s, were arrested shortly before 7.00am yesterday.

They were taken to Cobh and Midleton garda stations for questioning.

The four were being detained under Section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act.

The attack on the man took place shortly before 3.30am last Saturday at St Joseph’s View, Glanmire.

Gardaí were called to the scene after receiving a phone call from a member of the public.

The injured man was rushed to Cork University Hospital. Despite his injuries it is expected that he will make a full recovery.

Gardaí sealed off the area and carried out a thorough forensic investigation.

They didn’t make any arrests at the time, but detectives, backed by uniformed gardaí, detained the four men yesterday morning following an investigation.

A senior garda source said that a number of men had visited the injured man’s house and during the course of a row he received a hammer blow to the head.

Gardaí believe that a row might have taken place earlier which was connected to the later and more violent attack.

Meanwhile, in an unrelated incident, gardaí have renewed their appeals for witnesses to a sexual assault on a woman in the Glanmire area.

The woman alleged that she was attacked early on Sunday, June 8, as she made her way home from a night out.

The woman, who is in her 30s, had left the BK2 bar in the Crestfield Shopping Centre and was walking up Hazelwood road in the direction of Brooklodge when she said she was attacked.

She was later taken to the Sexual Assault Treatment Unit at the South Infirmary/Victoria University Hospital.

Gardaí said the attack could have happened any time between 2.30am and 5.00am.

They are appealing for anybody with information to contact Glanmire garda station at [phone].