Two men arrested in connection with Banbridge murder

Two men have been arrested as part of a murder investigation into the death of a woman whose body was found in a house in Banbridge, Co Down last night.

She has been named by police as 40-year-old Karen Cummings.

The mother of two worked in the paediatrics unit of Daisy Hill Hospital in Newry.

Police said they had received a report at 6.30pm last night that a woman was lying inside a house at Laurel Heights in Banbridge with a serious head injury.

Ms Cummings was pronounced dead at the scene.

A post-mortem examination is due to be carried out.

A 42-year-old man was arrested at the scene yesterday. A second man, aged in his 30s, was arrested in the area today.

Both are being detained on suspicion of murder.

District Commander for Armagh, Banbridge and Craigavon Superintendent Brendan Green expressed his condolences to Ms Cummings' family.

"Our thoughts are with Ms Cummings family and friends as they struggle to come to terms with what has happened, and they have our full sympathy at this time.

"Cordons remain in place and local residents will continue to see an increased visible police presence.

"Please be reassured that our officers will be doing everything in their power to conduct a thorough investigation into what has happened, and we would urge members of the public not to speculate."

'Tragic incident'

DUP MP Carla Lockhart has described Ms Cummings' death as a "tragic incident".

She said her "sympathies are very much with the family of the deceased at this very difficult time".

Ms Lockhart said the PSNI are "currently holding the scene and there will be a significant police presence in the area for some time".

She asked "everyone to give officers the time and space they need to conduct their investigation".

She said: "If anyone has any information that could assist the police, I would urge you to come forward as soon as possible.

"Our thoughts are with everyone affected by this difficult situation."

Alliance Party councillor Joy Ferguson said people in the town were "really shocked" by the death.

"Here in Laurel Heights particularly, this is a very close knit community. They really feel this tragedy," she told the BBC.

"It's not what we want to see and we as a community want to rally round everyone who is impacted," she added.

Ulster Unionist MLA Doug Beattie said it was "awful news".

In a social media post, he added: "My thoughts are with the family and friends of this woman and the police officers dealing with it."

Sinn Féin councillor Kevin Savage said the community is "shocked and saddened" by the death of Ms Cummings.

Mr Savage said his "heartfelt thoughts" are with the woman's family and friends as they "come to terms with this tragic loss of life".

"I would appeal to anyone with information to bring it forward to the PSNI," he added.