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Post-mortem examinations will be carried out on the bodies of a father and his two sons who died in what is considered an alleged murder-suicide.
Diarmuid O’Sullivan, 23, his brother Mark, 25, and their father, Tadhg, 59, were killed during the incident on rural farmland between Castlemagner and Kanturk yesterday.
The bodies of the three men were brought to Cork University Hospital on Monday night after state pathologist Dr. Margaret Bolster attended the scene.
A technical examination of the house and adjacent land is in progress.
The tragedy unfolded shortly after 6.30 in the morning, when a family dispute, over the inheritance of farmland, got out of hand.
During the heated disagreement, one of the brothers armed himself with a firearm and fatally wounded his brother.
When his father, Tadhg O’Sullivan, tried to intervene, more shots were fired.
Mark O’Sullivan’s body was found in a bedroom in the home shortly after 1 pm by the Garda Emergency Response Unit.
His brother and father were found dead in a nearby field a short time later. Gardaí says they all suffered gunshot wounds.
The wife and mother of the deceased men, Ann O’Sullivan, a woman in her 60s, had alerted neighbors that firearms had been fired at her home around 6.30 a.m.
Gardaí from Kanturk went to the scene and were informed that further shots had been heard from the field house, in Assolas, Kanturk.
A cordon was erected around the farmland and a response to critical garda incidents was established. The Garda Emergency Response Unit, the Armed Support Unit, the National Negotiation Unit, the Technical Support Unit, the Southern Region Dog Unit and the Air Support Unit were deployed.
The HSE National Ambulance Service provided additional support.
Garda negotiators attempted to contact anyone still on the property to establish whether there was an ongoing hostage situation.
They knew that there were firearms in legal possession in the house.
When there was no response, the Emergency Response Unit approached the house and Mark’s body was discovered in a bedroom.
He had suffered a fatal gunshot wound.
No one else was present at the house and the Garda Air Support Unit helicopter launched an aerial search of the adjacent lands to find the missing men.
Their bodies were found next to an ancient fort on nearby farmland less than 40 minutes later.
the he learned that Gardaí had been called to the estate earlier this month as part of a simmering dispute related to a will.
According to sources, there was an incident at the home involving one of the sons, but it was controlled.
The mother, Ann, had just returned home on Sunday night after a period away from home.
Last night she was being comforted by family and friends.
Superintendent Adrian Gamble confirmed that several firearms were seized at the scene and will be subject to technical examination.
It is understood that two rifles and a shotgun were found.
The deaths have left the rural community reeling, and neighbors and public representatives describe it as ‘shocking’.
Paul Gallagher, Castlemagner GAA press officer, said: “People are still trying to come to terms with what happened.
“Pain is difficult to deal with at best, but when you add in the circumstances of a tragedy of this magnitude, the pain multiplies tenfold.
“Also, the whole Covid-19 scenario complicates things even more because normally when you have a tragedy or a grief, the community comes together.
“You would call and do your part, but this whole Covid-19 thing has ruined all of that.
“People have to be very aware of that.”
They added: “With that said, we will do everything we can within the guidelines to make sure we do a little bit for the family.”
He said Mark and Diarmuid were involved in GAA when they were at Ballyhass National School.
They would have played Croke Rovers, which is a fusion of Castlemagner and Kilbrin teams.
Fianna Fáil local councilor Bernard Moynihan said: “They are a lovely family and everyone is deeply shocked and saddened by what has happened.”
The family has been described as respected members of the Castlemagner community.
The siblings were college graduates and were described by neighbors as friendly and polite.
The Cork Institute of Technology (CIT) confirmed that Diarmuid O’Sullivan was a recent student who completed his studies in June 2020 and would be awarded next week with a first-class honors degree in accounting.
Speaking this morning, Dr. Dan Collins, Head of Student Affairs, noted that the entire CIT Community was in shock when news of the tragic deaths broke yesterday.
He said: “There are no words that anyone can say to express how people feel. This tragedy is heartbreaking and we extend our thoughts and condolences to his mother, Ann.
“We also have in our thoughts and prayers his brother Mark and his father Tadgh. At this time we are aware of his friends, classmates and the staff of the Department of Accounting and Information Systems, as well as extended family and neighbors. . ”
Dr. Collins indicated that the staff described Diarmuid as a promising young man, hardworking, respected, and highly respected by staff and students.
Gardaí is appealing to anyone with information to contact the Garda station 022 31450 in Mallow, the confidential Garda line 1800 666 111 or any Garda station.
At least one shot is fired at the hamlet and Ann O’Sullivan manages to get out to raise the alarm.
An alarm was raised that firearms had been used at the family home in Assolas, between Kanturk and Castlemagner. Gardaí was told that one of the three men in the house may have suffered gunshot wounds.
Ms. O’Sullivan, who is still recovering from surgery and does not have a phone with her, comes to a neighbor’s house and they call gardaí.
A local unit of uniformed Gardaí arrived at the scene. Then two more shots were heard in the area.
Gardaí requested a media blackout on the incident, who initiated the response to the Critical Firearms incident.
Throughout the morning, Garda negotiators tried to contact the occupants of the house.
Members of the Emergency Response Unit entered the house and found the body of a brother in a bedroom. There were no other people present in the house.
The father and second brother were found dead in a nearby field. Both had suffered gunshot wounds.
The media blackout was lifted and Gardaí said they were not looking for anyone else as part of their investigation.
At a news conference, Superintendent Adrian Gamble confirmed that several firearms were seized at the scene and would be examined by a coroner.
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