Man arrested after woman in her 40s found dead in Finglas, Dublin

Body found on Melville Terrace

Gardaí were alerted to a house on Melville Terrace in Finglas, on the outskirts of north Dublin, shortly after 4.30am on Monday 26 October 2026. Officers found the body of a woman in her 40s, who was pronounced dead at the scene. Gardaí believe she suffered stab wounds, and The Journal reported that the death is believed to have been violent. Outlets describe the victim as a 48-year-old Romanian woman originally from Botosani, a city in Romania. The Journal reported she had only been living at the address for a short time, while the Irish Independent said she had lived in Ireland for several years.

Arrest of a man in his 50s

At around 11am on Monday, gardaí arrested a man in his 50s at a different location in west Dublin. The Irish Independent described the place as a shopping centre, while the Irish Times called it a retail premises. The Irish Times reported that he had left the scene and was not detained until about seven hours after the body was found. Early reports put his age in his 40s, but the garda statement quoted by later coverage gives his age as in his 50s. He is being held under Section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act 1984, which lets officers keep a suspect for up to 24 hours without charge. An Irish Independent source said the victim and the man in custody were known to each other. When that period ends, he must either be charged or released while a file goes to the Director of Public Prosecutions.

Investigation and appeal for witnesses

A senior investigating officer is directing the inquiry from an incident room at Finglas Garda Station, and a family liaison officer has been assigned to the dead woman's relatives. The Garda Technical Bureau has preserved the house for forensic examination. Uniformed officers searched undergrowth and parts of the Melville estate for anything the suspect may have discarded. Gardaí have also gathered CCTV from the area and carried out house-to-house inquiries. A postmortem examination is due on Tuesday 27 October, and the Office of the State Pathologist and the coroner have been notified. Gardaí want to hear from anyone who was in Melville Terrace between midnight and 5am on Monday. Anyone travelling in the area who has dashcam or other video is asked to hand it over. People with information can call Finglas Garda Station on 01 666 7500, the confidential line on 1800 666 111, or any garda station.

Reaction in the community

Local councillors described the community as deeply shaken. Conor Reddy of People Before Profit said the death had brought up a lot of pain for residents, recalling the 2021 killing of a 24-year-old mother of two on nearby Melville Drive. Fianna Fáil councillor Keith Connolly described great shock in the community and offered condolences to the woman's friends and family. Reddy called the death heartbreaking, and residents were discussing a vigil for her. The vigil is expected on Tuesday evening, 27 October.

“People are speaking about arranging a vigil tomorrow night for her. We will come together as a community and people will support each other through this.”