Gardaí investigating the death of a man after an improvised explosive device detonated in his room at a homeless accommodation centre in Dublin have ruled out any attack on the victim.
Instead, they believe he owned the device and detectives are now building a profile of him to establish how and why it was in his possession.
The dead man, who was in his 30s and from Lithuania, appears to have been keeping the device under his bed at the Depaul supported temporary accommodation centre on Little Britain Street in Dublin’s north inner city. He was the only person in the room when the explosion occurred at about 3.15pm on Thursday.
Gardaí were liaising with the authorities in Lithuania and also examining the man’s phone – including internet and search history – for any evidence that might shed light on the origins of the device. They are also investigating his mental health history.
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It was unclear if he had constructed the device or was storing it, having acquired it from criminals in Dublin. The criminal investigation into the origins of the device, which was effectively a small bomb, is being carried out by detectives at the Bridewell Garda station.
The Depaul facility was evacuated safely immediately after the explosion and remained sealed-off on Friday as members of the Garda Technical Bureau carried out forensic examinations.
Depaul Ireland chief executive David Carroll said there was a “great degree of pride” at how quickly the other 71 residents and staff left the building and got to safety when the explosion occurred. While the residents had been forced to flee, leaving all of their possessions, they are being well-supported at present.
“All of those 71 people continue to be accommodated and will be accommodated over the next couple of days and over the weekend,” he said. “We hope to be able to get back into Little Britain Street as soon as possible but, in the meantime, we’ll be supporting all of our service users with welfare advice and emergency payments.”
He said the premises was a “critical” piece of infrastructure for homeless people in Dublin and he was hopeful it would be able to open again soon.
The explosion prompted a major security operation on Thursday, involving the Defence Forces assisting the Garda. The Defence Forces’ Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) unit, using a robot, carried out a controlled explosion on the remains of the device.
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A Defence Forces spokesman said technicians arrived on the scene just after 7pm, confirming that the EOD carried out “post-blast analysis and clearance, which included a controlled explosion”. Once the scene was cleared, it was handed back to the Garda Síochána and the operation ended at about 12.30am on Friday.
The Garda confirmed the man in his 30s who was in the room was pronounced dead at the scene and a postmortem was being carried out on his remains. His identity was quickly established and efforts were begun to contact his loved ones.
“The explosion was confined to one room within the property, and no one else was injured. Residents at the premises were evacuated, and a cordon along with local traffic diversions remain in place,” the Garda said.
Dublin Fire Brigade’s firefighters and paramedics from Phibsborough, Tara Street and North Strand stations responded to the emergency call at 3.15pm. They brought the incident under control and handed the scene to gardaí at about 4.15pm.
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