LAST UPDATE | 24 Mar 2023
TWO ARRESTS HAVE been made in the longstanding Kerry Babies investigation.
Gardaí said yesterday evening that they have arrested a man in his 60s and a woman in her 50s in relation to the discovery of the body of a male infant known as Baby John at White Strand, Cahersiveen, County Kerry on 14 April, 1984.
“The arrests are a significant development in this investigation in an effort to establish the truth surrounding the death of Baby John in 1984 and deliver justice for Baby John,” said Superintendent Flor Murphy, who has been leading the investigation.
Gardaí said the pair were arrested in the Munster region on suspicion of murder and are currently detained at Garda Stations in the south of the country under Section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act, 1984.
An extensive investigation has been ongoing since 2018 into this incident by Gardaí in the Kerry Division supported by the Garda Serious Crime Review Team.
The Serious Crime Review Team is part of the National Bureau of Criminal Investigation. The investigation into the murder of Baby John is being led by the NBCI, working with local gardaí.
Hundreds of people have been interviewed and over 560 lines of enquiry have been initiated since 2018.
“I am again appealing to the public for any information in relation to the death of Baby John in 1984. Anyone who comes forward will be treated with sensitivity and compassion,” Murphy said.
Cahersiveen was calm today with pubs and restaurants quiet – the tourist influx yet to arrive.
People were slow to speak about the events of 39 years ago but some did ask if the reporter had we any information.
At Holy Cross cemetery just outside Cahersiveen two women, visiting from outside of the area, came to pay their respects at the grave.
At White Strand, where Baby John’s body was discovered in 1984, the rolling waves and spray of the Atlantic was the only noise – an empty beach with just the paw marks of a dog showing any activity.
In January 2018, gardaí announced a review into the death of Baby John, whose lifeless body was found with multiple injuries on White Strand beach in 1984.
Part of the early stages of that investigation was focused on determining, using computer mapping, how Baby John’s body could have ended up on White Strand.
This then led gardaí to do a broad DNA trawl of the wider Cahirsiveen, Valentia area.
At that time, gardaí took DNA samples from locals in the region in the hope of potentially tracing the baby’s parents. This was done on a voluntary basis; people could decline to take part.
One of the key pillars of the murder investigation centres around those DNA samples.
A large amount of samples were processed and once that work was complete, the investigation team then sought an exhumation order under the Coroner’s Act.
The remains of Baby John were then exhumed in Kerry on 14 September, 2021, in what gardaí hoped could provide the final piece in the puzzle as they bid to solve the mystery of his death.
The baby’s remains were then re-interred at Holy Cross Cemetery in Cahersiveen the same afternoon.
A source at the time told The Journal: “There was a sample available from the time but that was taken in 1984 so it would be best practice to get another more recent sample.
“That sample will now be tested and compared with the samples gathered in 2018. It is a huge investigation and a lot of work has gone into it but gardaí are hopeful of resolving this once and for all.”
This DNA sample from Baby John was then cross referenced with 2018 samples from the community.
While the two people arrested may have given a sample in the recent voluntary appeal, they may also be asked to give an up-to-date sample by gardaí in custody.
It’s understood the arrests yesterday were not made in the immediate local area around Cahersiveen and Valentia but in the broader West Kerry area.
The re-examination of the Baby John case was accompanied with an apology from senior officers for the way the force handled the original case.
In 2018, gardaí confirmed that a formal apology was offered to Joanne Hayes for the stress and pain she was put through as a result of the original investigation. She had wrongly been accused of being the mother of the murdered baby.
Speaking on RTÉ’s Today with Claire Byrne, Justice Minister Simon Harris said he can “only imagine how painful a day like today must be” for Hayes.
He told RTÉ: “I’m also conscious of the fact that this was a time that really brought a lot of pain in terms of the biases that existed in Ireland.
“It was a defining moment in social history and I very much think of Joanne Hayes today and her own family and all of the pain that she went through and the really despicable and unacceptable way she was treated at the time.”
Appeal
Speaking at the time of the announcement of the fresh review, Superintendent Murphy made the following appeal:
“Someone is Baby John’s mother. Someone is Baby John’s father. Someone knew his mother or father. People have carried a lot of pain and hurt over the last 30 years. This is an opportunity for them to help bring closure to this terrible event and ensure that Baby John receives justice.
“Our strong belief at the current time is that the answers to this are in Cahersiveen and the close surrounding areas.
“We would ask anyone who was living in Cahersiveen and surrounding areas around the time of April 1984 to speak to us,” he said.
“After all these years, Baby John deserves the truth.”
Elsewhere, Minister Harris told RTÉ: “We’ve got to remember here, the most innocent of people, an innocent baby, was found murdered on the beach and no matter how long ago it was, or how different in Ireland it may have been, every person in Ireland, young or old, has a right to truth and justice
“I know gardaí have working extraordinarily hard on this, particularly since the renewed effort in 2018.
“I would encourage anybody with any information to come forward because this is a pivotal moment, and anybody who has any information, no matter how small, could be extremely helpful.”
Anyone with information is asked to contact Killarney Garda Station (064) 667 1160 the Garda Confidential Line 1800 666 111 or any Garda Station.
- With reporting from Niall O’Connor in Cahersiveen and Diarmuid Pepper
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