Sligo Gardaí Checked 'Different House' After 999 Call

Gardaí in Sligo received, and acted upon, a 999 call to the local Garda station last Thursday, which said there was a man tied up in a house with a brown gate, officers investigating the killing of Eugene Gillespie have confirmed.

Mr Gillespie was not found until the following night, lying on the floor with his hands tied behind his back at his home on Old Market Street, about 100 yards from the Garda station.

He died from his injuries at Sligo General Hospital on Saturday.

As detectives carried out a number of raids in Sligo town yesterday as part of the inquiry into the murder, it emerged gardaí had investigated a different house after a 999 call last Thursday.

A spokesman said gardaí had acted on the information and a garda had gone to the house “as described”, but was satisfied there was “nothing untoward”. He confirmed Mr Gillespie’s house was not the one checked, but refused to say whether the house actually checked was on the same street.

There is a brown wooden gate leading to a yard adjacent to Mr Gillespie’s house and a brown gate further along the same street closer to the Garda station, the Irish Times has reported.

Mayor of Sligo David Cawley was among those who defended gardaí on the matter yesterday, saying the information given in the 999 call was not exact enough.

“I have never known the gardaí to take a 999 call lightly. Unfortunately it may have been less than exact about where the house was,” he said.

(H/GK)