Gardaí question man after woman’s death in Dublin hotel

A man in his late twenties remains in custody this evening after he was arrested over the apparent violent death of a woman in a hotel room in Tallaght yesterday.

The body of Sonia Blount (30), with an address in Tallaght, was discovered by cleaning staff at 3.30pm in a room in the Plaza Hotel in Tallaght yesterday.

While the exact cause of death is unclear, gardaí are treating it as suspicious and believe she may have been strangled.

Investigating detectives are waiting to hear the results of a preliminary examination by deputy State pathologist Dr Michael Curtis who attended the scene shortly after the remains were discovered. A full postmortem will be carried out later today.

Ms Blount, a mother of one child, was a guest of the hotel and had checked into it before her death, it is understood.

The scene was sealed off yesterday afternoon and the body remained in situ for examination.

It is not thought that any disturbance came to the attention of hotel staff but rather that the woman was found by cleaning staff.

Gardaí are now set to examine CCTV footage from the premises to see who had gained access to her room or to see if she had been in the company of anyone else.

Approximately six hours after Ms Blount’s body was discovered, a man in his twenties from Clondalkin was arrested in connection with the incident. He is being questioned at Tallaght Garda station.

Gardai meanwhile last night launched a murder investigation into the death of a 26-year-old Latvian man in Co Laois on Saturday.

He was discovered with suspected stab wounds at a house on Spa Street in Portarlington at around 5pm. His remains were removed from the property following a preliminary examination by Assistant State Pathologist Dr Margot Bolster yesterday morning.

Two Lithuanian nationals, one in his early 30s and another in his mid 40s, were arrested at the scene and were being held in Portlaoise and Tullamore Garda Stations last night.

In a third incident, the body of a man with head injuries was discovered by neighbours at his home in Edenderry, Co Offaly yesterday.

The man lived alone and was well known in the area. It is understood neighbours became concerned for his well-being in the early afternoon and when they called to his home, he was found on a couch in the living room.