Latest news with #IcelandicPolice
Irish Times
13 hours ago
- Irish Times
French father and daughter killed in Iceland had been living in Ireland for 10 years
In Iceland's capital Reykjavík, the longest day of the year is just around the corner. The city is experiencing the perpetual daylight that will last for weeks. At the old harbour, the five-star Reykjavík Edition hotel is bustling. This is a stylish, redeveloped area, catering for tourists as well as visitors to the nearby concert hall. But the Nordic city, reputed for its safety, is reeling from a double homicide that has left residents shocked. Just after 7am last Saturday, a man aged 58 and a woman aged about 30 were found dead at the Reykjavík hotel after sustaining stab wounds. Police also found a woman aged 56 who also had serious stab wounds. READ MORE The victims were the husband and daughter of the woman, who is suspected of murdering them. Their names have not yet been released, which is normal policing protocol in Iceland. The family was French, but had been living in Dublin for about 10 years, said Icelandic police officer, superintendent Ævar Pálmi Pálmason, who is leading the investigation. Icelandic police have been working closely with An Garda Síochána , according to Pálmason. The family of the deceased have been informed. The suspect is still in hospital, where she is receiving medical treatment for her wounds. She was questioned on Wednesday by police. 'The next steps are to keep gathering information and evidence, and co-operating with both French and Irish authorities,' said Pálmason. The Reykjavík Edition hotel where an Irish-based French father and daughter were killed last weekend. Photograph: Karen McHugh Icelandic police have 12 weeks to press charges, if the investigation leads to a prosecution. A source familiar with the investigation said that police had seized a knife from the scene which they are examining forensically as they believe it is the weapon used to kill the father and daughter. One line of inquiry being investigated is that the two were attacked as they slept. Just more than a fifth bigger than the island of Ireland but with a population of only 389,000, Iceland is known for its low crime rate. There were no more than three murders per year between 2010 and 2019 and no murders at all in 2003, 2006 and 2008, but the rate has been increasing, with eight murders in 2024 and six people killed so far this year. At the clothing store GK Reykjavík, close to the hotel, Birkir Már Hafberg and Guðrún Z Jónsdóttir discussed the events. 'I was actually working that day here. It's very shocking – because also, the Edition is a very high-class hotel,' said Jónsdóttir. Saturday was an otherwise joyful day in the Icelandic calendar. Almost 3,000 people graduated from the University of Iceland that morning. 'I was at a graduation party. It was like a whole conversation – the whole party kind of stopped, almost, and we were all talking about it,' said Hafberg. 'It's not something that we're used to. It's just... out of place.' 'Especially because it's a family tragedy,' said Jónsdóttir. 'It's very sad.' The Reykjavík Edition hotel where an Irish-based French father and daughter were killed last weekend. Photograph: Karen McHugh Across the hall in Hafnartorg Gallery is a trendy food court adjacent to the Edition hotel. 'In Mexico, you hear about these things all the time, so you kind of build a thick skin, but not here,' said chef Jeronimo Cadena, who is originally from Mexico. 'I was shocked. The fact that it's so close by and in Iceland, you don't expect those things to happen here. It doesn't happen regularly, this kind of violent crime.' Guðmundur Ágúst Heiðarsson was in the Reykjavik Edition late Friday night, attending a party at the hotel's well-known rooftop bar. 'Just to be in that area, and to be walking away from that area at the time, it is a shock. This is very unusual to see in Iceland,' he said. James Long, a tourist from New York visiting Iceland. Photograph: Karen McHugh James Long, a tourist from New York, came to Iceland to take part in the city's Midnight Sun Run which takes place to celebrate the summer solstice. 'When I'm on vacation I check out from the news entirely,' he said. 'It's just one of those breaks from real life. It's terrible to hear about this.' – Additional reporting by Conor Gallagher
Irish Times
a day ago
- Irish Times
Gardaí to interview dozens in Iceland over potential murder of Jón Jónsson in Dublin
Garda detectives are to travel to Iceland next week to interview dozens of people about the disappearance and potential murder of Jón Jónsson , who disappeared in Dublin five years ago. Mr Jónsson went missing after visiting from Iceland with his partner to play in a poker tournament. His family believes he may have been murdered by a paid hitman in a case of mistaken identity. One line of investigation is the hitman intended to target a different Icelandic man visiting Ireland at the time. Gardaí have recently stepped up their investigation into Mr Jónsson's disappearance. Several fresh searches have been conducted in Dublin in recent months and there has been extensive co-operation with Icelandic police. READ MORE This weekend, a Garda team will travel to the Icelandic capital of Reykjavik where they have arranged to interview at least 35 people connected to Mr Jónsson or who may have knowledge of the events surrounding his disappearance. The visit is being facilitated and organised by Icelandic police. It is separate to ongoing co-operation between the two police forces regarding the murder of two French citizens in Reykjavik last week who had been living in Ireland. A missing person poster in Dublin of Jon Jónsson who vanished in Dublin in 2019 after coming to play poker. Photograph: Brenda Fitzsimons/ The Irish Times Gardaí involved in the Jónsson case believe there are people who may have knowledge of the man's disappearance who are not comfortable speaking to Icelandic police. They hope they will be more willing to speak to Irish officers. The visit is expected to coincide with a renewed public appeal for information in Iceland including a press conference. On Thursday, Icelandic police said the courts have approved the Garda visit and Icelandic officers will be available to assist their Irish counterparts. The interviews will be carried out by gardaí but under close supervision by Icelandic authorities. Gardaí will not have any powers to arrest or charge people. In April, investigating gardaí carried out four new searches in Dublin with the help of cadaver dogs. [ 'I'm almost certain something happened': Family fear missing Jón Jónsson was killed by hitman in case of mistaken identity Opens in new window ] The searches were carried out at several locations after people provided information to gardaí following the airing of an RTÉ documentary podcast series on Mr Jónsson's disappearance. Gardaí also travelled to the headquarters of Europol in The Hague in the Netherlands where they met Icelandic police and formulated a strategy to step up the investigation. During the meeting, gardaí provided their counterparts with a list of people in Iceland they would like to speak to. Mr Jónsson, a father of four and taxi driver, vanished on February 9th, 2019, after leaving the Bonnington Hotel on the Swords Road in north Dublin. He left the hotel on foot at about 11am and was recorded by a security camera 200m away passing the entrance to a nursing home next to the hotel. Beyond those images gardaí had no information about where he went and no trace of him has ever been uncovered. He had never been to Ireland before, had no friends or family here and had never gone missing before.
Irish Times
12-05-2025
- Irish Times
Gardaí investigating disappearance of Jón Jónsson conduct new searches
Gardaí investigating the disappearance of Icelandic man Jón Jónsson in Dublin six years ago have carried out four new searches with the help of cadaver dogs. The searches were carried out at several locations in north Dublin last month after a number of people provided information to gardaí following the airing of an RTÉ documentary podcast series on Mr Jónsson's disappearance. Gardaí have also travelled to the headquarters of Europol in The Hague in the Netherlands where they met Icelandic police and formulated a strategy to step up the investigation. This will involve gardaí travelling to Iceland in the coming weeks to interview people who may have knowledge of what happened to Mr Jónsson. READ MORE Mr Jónsson, a father of four and taxi driver, vanished on February 9th, 2019, after leaving the Bonnington Hotel on the Swords Road in north Dublin, where he had been staying. He had come to Ireland with his fiancée for a poker tournament and short holiday in Ireland. The missing man, who was aged 41 years at the time he vanished, left the hotel on foot at about 11am and was recorded by a security camera 200m away passing the entrance to a nursing home next to the hotel. Beyond those images gardaí had no information about where he went and no trace of him has ever been uncovered. He had never been to Ireland before, had no friends or family here and had never gone missing before. [ 'I'm almost certain something happened': Family fear missing Jón Jónsson was killed by hitman in case of mistaken identity Opens in new window ] The Garda said the investigation has created more than '270 jobs or lines of enquiries', taken numerous statements and reviewed hours of CCTV footage. In 2024, investigators search part of Santry Demesne following an anonymous tip-off but found no sign of the missing man. Last month, they returned to the park to search two further areas, including a wooded area near the lake. Investigators also searched an area near Collins Avenue and an area of wasteland in the Highfield area which had previously been searched. Nothing of evidential value was discovered. Two of the searches were conducted due to information received by listeners to the podcast. The Jónsson family had been campaigning for gardaí to launch a wider search of the park and its lake. 'The search has not been properly done,' David Karl Wiium, brother of Mr Jónsson said in March. 'I'm not suggesting they dig the whole park up. But we want to get better answers.' During their meeting with Icelandic police last week in the Netherlands, gardaí provided a list of people in Iceland they would like to speak to. The Icelandic police agreed to facilitate a visit by gardaí to Iceland in the near future and to provide police officers and translators to assist. Gardaí also intend to use the visit to publicly appeal to Icelandic people with information to come forward to them. They believe there may be people with information who would feel more comfortable dealing with the gardaí rather than the Icelandic police. [ Gardaí enlist Europol to assist in case of missing Icelandic man Jón Jónsson Opens in new window ] Mr Jónsson's disappearance has not been upgraded to a murder inquiry. However, a source in Iceland told the podcast producers about a man who claimed to have killed Mr Jónsson, having intended to murder someone else. The information tallied with two other tip-offs received independently by Mr Jónsson's sister and stepbrother. In response to queries, Garda headquarters declined to confirm details of the fresh searches but appealed for people with information to come forward. 'The investigation team at Santry and Ballymun continue to liaise closely with Icelandic police and the Jónsson family. Enquiries are also being conducted with Europol with regards to this investigation,' a spokesman said. 'Anyone who has any information on Jón's disappearance or who can assist in locating him is asked to contact Ballymun Garda station on 01 6664400, the Garda Confidential Line on 1800 666 111 or any Garda station.'
