PM blames lawyer for McAreavey photos

The prime minister of Mauritius has claimed the graphic images of Michaela McAreavey which appeared in a Sunday newspaper were given to the publication by a defence lawyer.

Navin Ramgoolam — who told BBC he was writing to police in the Republic and the North to ask for their help in investigating the murder — said he had information to that effect while speaking at the country’s national assembly.

In response, Sanjeev Teeluckdharry, one of the defence lawyers representing the two men acquitted last week of killing the Co Tyrone newlywed, said the claim was an attempt to tarnish the defence. He said “so many people” had been in possession of the images.

“This is an attempt to stigmatise the defence after we were able to establish the catastrophic failures of the police.”

Mr Teeluckdharry and his fellow defence lawyer Rama Valayden are due to hold a press conference today at which they claim they will reveal new information about the killing.

Yesterday, Imran Hosany, editor of the Sunday Times, apologised for his news-paper’s decision to publish images of Mrs McAreavey’s body and the crime scene.

However, the Harte and McAreavey families issued a statement in which they said: “The hurt this man and his newspaper have caused over the past 48 hours cannot be undone.”

They said “the best and most obvious form of apology” would be to tell authorities how the Sunday Times came to be in receipt of these photographs.

At almost the same time as that statement was released, Mr Ramgoolam blamed a defence lawyer. His comments came in response to a private notice question from the leader of the country’s opposition, Paul Berenger.

Mr Ramgoolam said the government was seeking to bring in officers from international police forces to help track Mrs McAreavey’s killer, and one of the options was the setting up of a “judicial inquiry”.

Despite criticism of local police’s handling of the case, he told Mr Berenger he had no intention of dismantling the Major Crimes Investigation Team.

Meanwhile, a journalist in Mauritius has claimed repeated calls — including many from GAA players for Irish tourists to boycott the island — are an “emotional reaction”, and “grossly exaggerated”. Travel agents have begun to stop selling Mauritius as a destination.

Touria Prayag of L’Express Weekly told RTÉ radio there was widespread sympathy for Mrs McAreavey’s family on the island.