Updated 4.04pm

GARDAÍ IN THE Bridewell have begun an investigation after the body of a woman was discovered on the grounds of a church in Dublin.

A member of the public discovered the woman’s body at St Michan’s Church, off Church Street in Dublin 7 and notified gardaí at around 6am this morning.

Gardaí attended and the woman was pronounced dead at the scene.

The area was sealed off and a technical examination of the scene is currently under way.

The woman’s body was taken to the city morgue, where a port-mortem is expected to take place later today.

Investigations are currently ongoing into the circumstances of her death, gardaí said.

In a statement, Church of Ireland Archbishop Dr Michael Jackson said express his sadness at her death.

He said: “I also wish to voice the sympathy of the Church of Ireland community in Dublin to all those close to her and to whom she meant a great deal as a person, a friend and a family-member. May she rest in peace and may those who mourn her loss be comforted in their distress.”