Dumbbell may be tied to O’Reilly murder

A dumbbell found in a stream not far from the home of murdered Rachel O’Reilly is being examined to see if it could have been the weapon used to kill her.

The find was made by a local man who spotted it in water about 2km from the north Co Dublin bungalow where the mother of two was battered to death in Oct 2004. Her husband, Joe O’Reilly, was found guilty of her murder in 2007 and is serving a life sentence in prison where he is preparing a legal challenge, claiming his conviction was a miscarriage of justice.

Gardaí confirmed yesterday that an item had been notified to Balbriggan Garda Station and had been removed for forensic examination, but said it was not being linked to any particular investigation at this stage.