Woman, 20s, held in connection with Kyran Durnin murder

Gardaí are continuing to question a woman in connection with the murder of missing schoolboy Kyran Durnin.

Kyran, who would now be eight years old, was reported missing in August of this year but gardaí suspect he may have been killed up to two years ago.

The woman, who is believed to be in her 20s, had been abroad for a period of time but was arrested in Ireland yesterday on suspicion of murder.

It is understood that she was known to Kyran and has been a person of interest in the case for some time, and that gardaí have spoken to her on a number of occasions.

The woman is being questioned at a garda station in the northeast of the country under Section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act.

She can be held for a maximum of 24 hours before she must either be charged or released. However, that period of detention can be suspended to allow the woman time to rest.

In August, a missing person's report was filed at Drogheda Garda Station in relation to Kyran Durnin and gardaí were told he was last seen in the town two days previous.

However, during the course of this inquiry, information came to light that led detectives to suspect that Kyran had been missing for longer than two days.

It subsequently emerged that he had not been seen since May 2022, when he had been a pupil at a local primary school in Dundalk.

In October, the missing person’s case was upgraded to murder.

Gardaí established that Kyran had previously lived at a house in Dundalk for a number of years and searched it and an adjoining area of open land as part of their murder investigation.

Gardaí have said the current tenants who live at the property are in no way connected to Kyran or his disappearance.

The results of the three-day search were not released for operational purposes.

The Child and Family Agency Tusla said that in August, it alerted gardaí to a significant concern about Kyran and that while he was not in its care, it had engaged with him and his family.

Tusla subsequently conducted an internal review into its interactions with Kyran and his family.

The agency said it would not be making the review public but it has since been shared with Minister for Children Roderic O'Gorman.

Meanwhile, a separate report requested in relation to information held by Tusla’s Education Support Service (TESS) has been shared with Minister for Education Norma Foley.

The review report has also been made available to the National Review Panel, whose responsibility it is to independently review cases of serious incidents involving children in care or known to Tusla.

Gardaí yesterday also renewed their appeal for anyone with information on the case to come forward.

In a statement confirming the arrest, a garda spokesperson said: "An Garda Síochána continues to appeal to any person with any information, on the disappearance and murder of Kyran Durnin, no matter how insignificant it may seem, to contact the Garda Investigation Team at Drogheda Garda Station on 041 987 4200, the Garda Confidential Line on 1800 666 111 or speak with any member of An Garda Síochána."