Mystery girl is 'highly vulnerable' Australian aged 25, court told

A 25-year-old Australian woman found wandering by the GPO in Dublin last month has been described in the High Court as ‘highly vulnerable’.

She remains in HSE care and is to be assessed by an adult psychiatrist this afternoon before a court order providing for her detention expires tomorrow.

Gardaí had feared the young woman was a teenage victim of child trafficking when she was found wandering in a distressed state on O’Connell Street last month.

She was taken into HSE care on the presumption she was a minor but after releasing her photograph to the public, Gardaí are now satisfied she is a 25 year old Australian woman, named in Australian media reports as Samantha Azzopardi from Queensland but said to have a number of aliases..

Sgt David Gallagher gave evidence to the High Court that a friend in Co Tipperary where she'd stayed for three weeks had helped to establish her identity.

A child psychiatrist who assessed her last night said she had chosen not to speak but didn't seem disturbed.

However she is believed to have previous psychiatric difficulties and has been described as very vulnerable

Mr Justice George Bermingham has discharged an order detaining her in HSE care but as a safety net he put a stay on her discharge until tomorrow morning to allow for further psychiatric assessment.