THE MAN arrested in connection with the Creeslough explosion tragedy has been released without charge.
The man, aged 60s, was arrested yesterday after reportedly voluntarily presenting to Dundalk Garda Station at around 10am.
The man was arrested for alleged offences contrary to the Non Fatal Offences Against the Person Act 1997 in connection with the Donegal tragedy.
He has since been released without charge and gardai have said a file will be prepared for the Director of Public Prosecution.
A spokesperson said: “The man, 60s, arrested in connection with this investigation has been released without charge.
“A file will be prepared for the Director of Public Prosecutions.
“The investigation into the fatal explosion at a building complex in Creeslough, Co. Donegal is ongoing, co-ordinated from Milford Garda station where an Incident Room has been established under the direction of a Senior Investigating Officer.
“The investigation continues to be led by local Gardai,, in Donegal Division supported by the Garda National Bureau of Criminal Investigation (GNBCI) and other agencies including the Health and Safety Authority and the Commission for the Regulation of Utilities (CRU).”
Ten people were killed when an explosion ripped through a service station in the heart of the Donegal village on October 7, 2022.
Yesterday, the families of loved ones who died in the tragedy were personally contacted by Gardai to be informed a man had been arrested in connection with the tragedy.
Heartbroken families were informed of the development just minutes after the news broke that a man, aged in his 60s, had presented himself at Dundalk Garda Station in connection with the explosion.
One family member who lost a loved one in the tragedy confirmed they had been contacted by Gardai.
The person asked not to be identified.
However they confirmed: “They rang us first thing after the news began to break.
“We were simply contacted and told that a man in his 60s had been arrested in Dundalk in connection with the investigation.
“We were not given any more information.”
The person added they are hopeful the investigation may be advanced by the latest arrest.
They said: “We are hopeful that this time there may be some kind of update in the investigation after this arrest.”
To date, there have been five arrests in connection with the explosion.
The initial four arrests of three men and one woman resulted in those who were arrested being released without charge.
All ten people who died in the explosion ranged in age from five to 59 years.
They were Robert Garwe and his five-year-old daughter Shauna Flanagan Garwe, Jessica Gallagher, Martin McGill, James O’Flaherty, Martina Martin, 14-year-old Leona Harper, Catherine O’Donnell and her 13-year-old son James Monaghan and Hugh Kelly.
The man arrested in connection with the Creeslough tragedy has been released without charge[/caption]
