Sligo auctioneer believed to have suffered a violent death 

Aidan Moffitt was a well-known auctioneer, Fine Gael activist and peace commissioner believed to be in his mid-to-late 30s.

Garda forensic investigators have begun examining the scene of a violent death in Sligo where a man’s body was discovered on Monday night.

Aidan Moffitt, who was originally from Roscommon, was a well-known auctioneer, Fine Gael activist and peace commissioner believed to be in his mid-to-late 30s.

Gardaí were alerted to his home in Cartron Heights, an estate just outside Sligo town, at about 8.30pm on Monday. They immediately sealed off the house and preserved the scene where his body still remains. 

He is believed to have suffered several brutal injuries. Mr Moffitt lived alone and had just returned from a holiday in Spain last weekend.

A team from the Garda Technical Bureau arrived at the scene at 11am. A State pathologist is due later on Tuesday afternoon.

Gardaí said the results of a post-mortem examination would determine the course of their investigation.

In Cartron Heights, one of the oldest estates in Sligo town, residents told the Irish Examiner of their shock as they came and went on their way to town or Mass. Mr Moffitt was prayed for this morning at nearby St Joseph’s Church.

Directly across the road from the crime scene, retired home economics teacher Rosaleen Oldfield became visibly upset as she described the deceased man as "a lovely young man, kind and helpful".

"I saw the ambulance last night and then I saw the gardaí. He helped me during Covid after my husband died. My family couldn’t come near me and he was across the road and he’d wave and say ‘are you OK for everything?'. 

"A lovely, lovely neighbour. He was a professional, a genuinely nice guy. He minded his own business, he came and went. I couldn’t sleep last night. My stomach was churning. He’s here over five years at least. He was very conscientious about the garden and the house, put the rest of us to shame."

Mother-of-two Ingrid Kalasnikova said she feared for the safety of her children: "Normally it’s quiet here but lately, I don’t let them walk alone any more. I let them walk with the dog. I hope they find who did this, it’s very sad."

Virginia and Tom Roddy, who have lived in the area for 43 years, said: "We are very shocked and saddened to hear that could happen at our doorstep. It’s very tragic for something like that to happen to a young man, in these hard times and difficult days. Nothing has ever happened here like that in our 43 years living here."

Gardaí at the scene where the body of Aidan Moffitt was found in his home at Cartron, Sligo, on Monday. Picture: James Connolly

Former Fine Gael TD Tony McLoughlin and Fine Gael local election contender Blaine Gaffney laid flowers outside the deceased man’s house in Cartron Heights. 

"We were close personal friends for years," Mr McLoughlin said at the scene. "He was a big supporter within the party, both for Blaine and I for many, many years. He was a good worker within the party and a successful businessman in Sligo in the auctioneering business as well. It’s a terrible tragedy altogether."

He described the deceased as a "wonderful person business-wise" who held some senior positions within the Fine Gael party in the Sligo-Leitrim constituency over the years.

"He was secretary, he was treasurer, he was at a very high level over the years. He was a very honest, honourable person. He was that type of fellow you’d go to for advice, he’d see things from a different perspective," added Mr McLoughlin.

"Everybody who knew him here in Sligo is in total shock, totally numb about what’s allegedly happened here in the town,’ said Blaine Gaffney, a close friend of Mr Moffitt.

"I’m deeply troubled by the whole thing. He was a local businessman, a very popular person for people who knew him, very outgoing, extremely intelligent. He would have worked very hard with both my election campaigns and that of the recently elected Frank Feighan [Fine Gael candidate for Sligo-Leitrim]  down through the years. 

"But more than that, a really, really good man with a good heart and to think that something like this could happen is just shocking. I just can’t comprehend what’s happening."