An American man (30) appeared before Portlaoise District Court on Thursday morning charged with the murder of his father, following a fatal assault at the five-star Ballyfin Demesne hotel in Co Laois on Tuesday night.
Henry McGowan, with an address at Clinton Street, Brooklyn, New York, United States, was charged with the murder of John McGowan (60) at Ballyfin Demense, Ballyfin, Co Laois, on November 12th.
Det Garda Ger Galwey gave evidence of the arrest and said that, when cautioned, Mr McGowan made no reply to the charge.
Judge Andrew Cody remanded the accused in custody to Cloverhill Prison and adjourned the case to November 18th, for a hearing to be conducted by video link.
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Defending solicitor Barry Fitzgerald said he accepted the court had no jurisdiction to grant bail.
He said that it has been accepted that his client has significant mental health issues and asked Judge Cody to request the prison service to provide immediate medical assistance to Mr McGowan, to which the judge agreed.
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