Gardaí have managed to formally identify the body of a man found in Barna back in September 2014 thanks to new information.
The man’s body was found in Rusheen Bay Woods, Barna on September 27, 2014 by a man walking his dog.
His death was treated as a personal tragedy, however as no form of identification was found with the deceased and he had very few items in his possession, it was not possible to establish his identity.
Despite extensive investigations, with dental records and fingerprints taken, and both national and international databases of missing persons queried, Gardaí were unable to identify the man.
A facial reconstruction was also carried out by Dr Christopher Rynn from the Centre for Anatomy and Human Identification at the University of Dundee, in Scotland.
Public appeals for information have been issued by Gardaí in the media in the months and years, leading to new information coming to light in recent weeks.
Two Polish individuals contacted the gardaí to say that a Polish man had been living with them in a house in Galway for a brief period in late September 2014 and had advised them to rent his room out after a certain period of time if he did not return.
One of the items found on the deceased man was a silver key, which was found to match the old locking mechanism in that house.
Based on this line of inquiry a DNA comparison was conducted via Interpol in Poland recently, which confirmed that the man was a Polish national.
Gardaí understand that the man travelled to the United States in the early 1990s from Poland and in 2014 travelled to Ireland within weeks of being found in Barna.
Superintendent Patrick McHugh said, “Great credit is due to the dedicated Gardaí who have been working this case to establish the identity of this man since 2014.”
“The circumstances of this case are both sad and tragic. The family and An Garda Síochána are grateful to the individuals who came forward to provide us with the key to solving this matter.”
“Taking the crucial step of contacting the Gardaí has ensured that this man’s family are now aware of the whereabouts of their loved one”.
At the time he was buried in Bohermore cemetery due to a lack of formal identification.
The man’s relatives have been contacted and a file will now be prepared for the County Coroner.
Although this man’s death was treated as a personal tragedy An Garda Síochána in Salthill did not close the investigation into the identity of this man and this has ensured that his family now have some closure.
