Gardai searching for a missing Ballinasloe man have confirmed the discovery of a body in Co Galway today.
The discovery was made shortly before midday in Ballinasloe. A garda spokesman said officers from the Technical Bureau have arrived at the scene to carry out an examination and the State Pathologists office has been contacted. The body, which was badly burned, was found in a shed at the back of a housing estate during a search for 28-year-old local man Richard Carrick, who has been missing since last Saturday. Superintendent Peader Kearney of Ballinasloe Garda Station said that because of the poor condition of the body they could not tell whether it was that of a man or a woman.
However Supt Kearney said the investigation was at too early a stage to rule out foul play and refused to be drawn on whether Gardai believe the body to be that of Mr Carrick.
"We'll know more when the post mortem is done and we can get some level of identification, but at this stage we are not in a position to identify the remains as that of Richard Carrick," he said. Mr Kearney added state pathologist Dr Marie Cassidy was en route to the scene.