Woman found dead in Bray passed away days beforehand, post-mortem results find

Gardaí were called to the couple's home in Cois Cairn, North Bray, on Wednesday, where the body of Jamie McGinn was discovered in the front garden, while the body of Biddy O'Brien (inset) was found in the upstairs bedroom. Picture: PA

A woman found dead at her home in Bray, Co Wicklow, on Wednesday morning, passed away a couple of days beforehand, post-mortem results have found.

No signs of injury were discovered on her body to indicate foul play.

Tests are being conducted on blood samples to check if Biddy O’Brien suffered a drugs overdose.

Ms O’Brien and her husband, Jamie McGinn, whose body was found outside their home in the garden, had a long history of drug abuse.

Mr McGinn was found with visible injuries and gardaí are investigating if the man took his own life after discovering his wife’s body.

Technical experts have removed any signs or evidence of possible drug use in the home for examination.

Gardaí were called to the home in Cois Cairn in North Bray at 8am and found the body of Mr McGinn in the front garden and Ms O’Brien in an upstairs bedroom.

A major investigation was put in place as gardaí began the process of determining how the couple had died.

Post-mortem results showed that Ms O'Brien had died a couple of days previously to being discovered.

Tragic fire nine years ago

The couple had tragically lost two young children in a house fire nine years ago. 

Ms O’Brien, though badly burned, was the sole survivor of the blaze.

The fire, at an apartment block in Clondalkin, West Dublin, in 2017, also killed her pregnant cousin Annmarie O’Brien and her two-year-old daughter.

The horrific tragedy had a detrimental impact on the couple and both developed drug addictions.

In January 2023, gardaí search their home and found almost 3kg of cocaine and a small amount of cannabis in their shed.

The Dublin Circuit Criminal Court took into account Mr McGinn’s tragedy after hearing the deaths of his children were at the root of his addiction.

The court was told that he had €8,000 drug debt and was holding the drugs to reduce his debt. His sentence was reduced to an 18-month term.

• Cormac O’Keeffe, Security Correspondent