PETER IRETON, THE founder and former chief executive of the Limerick-based charity Bóthar, has been found dead in his home this morning.

His body was discovered at his home in Casteltroy in Limerick at around 8am. The incident has been described as a “personal tragedy”.

Gardaí would not comment further, but said they are not seeking anyone in connection with his death.

A family friend described the news as “devastating”.

“It’s a tragedy, people who know him are absolutely devastated,” they added.

Last week, it emerged that Bóthar was conducting an internal investigation into financial transactions involving the deceased.

The probe was looking into substantial payments allegedly received by the charity’s former CEO in the four years after he stepped down in 2011.

Ireton denied any impropriety.

The existence of the internal probe was disclosed in High Court proceedings last week, where the charity claimed his successor David Moloney had misappropriated €465,000.

Ireton told the Irish Independent that he had not been contacted by Bóthar about its investigation.

“This was all news to me. I didn’t know anything about it,” he told the newspaper.

“I am amazed. But I do want to deal with the situation.”

Ireton insisted he did not retire from Bóthar in 2011 and “continued working for the organisation until 1 May, 2015″.

Comments have been closed.