15/12/2008

Woman Arrested After Fatal Omagh Stabbing

A 36-year-old woman has been arrested following a fatal stabbing in Omagh this morning.

The incident happened at a house in the Hospital Road area of the town.

It is believed the 37-year-old victim, who had been stabbed, died from his injuries.

Police have said the attack took place shortly after 3am.

A PSNI spokesperson said the 36-year-old woman was helping police with their inquiries, however no more details have been release.

Local representatives have described the attack as a great tragedy, and expressed fears over the growing number of knife related incidents in Northern Ireland.

Vice Chair of Omagh District Council, Josephine Deehan, told the Belfast Telegraph: "We do not know any of the details at the moment about this incident or the circumstances surrounding it but my reaction is that it is a great tragedy, especially so close to Christmas. It is a great tragedy for the man who lost his life and for his family.

"I’d like to express my sympathies to this man’s family. This sort of incident displays a worrying trend towards knife crime."

Councillor Johnny McLaughlin said: "The circumstances of this are still unclear but it is very sad, especially coming up to Christmas."

The PSNI has led a series anti-knife crime campaigns over the last number of years in a bid to combat the problem.

In the last five years around 5,000 knife related incidents have been recorded by the police, averaging out at three attacks every day.

According to PSNI figures, knives were involved in three murders, three sexual offences, 45 attempted murders, 423 assaults, 206 robberies and 21 burglaries as well as other crimes including theft, criminal damage, fraud and forgery, all within the last financial year.

(PR)

Related Northern Ireland News Stories
Click here for the latest headlines.

28 October 2004
Police link hostage incident to attack on police station
Police have linked a gun attack on a police station on Wednesday night with a hostage incident in Co Antrim. A van used in the shooting of Randalstown PSNI station on Wednesday evening is believed to have been the vehicle stolen earlier in the evening from a family who were held hostage by a gang of men at a house in Craigstown Road in the town.
18 September 2006
Minister pledges to tackle NI knife culture
Criminal Justice Minister David Hanson is to announce a re-run of the knife amnesty in Northern Ireland later this year.
23 March 2023
Three Arrested Over Attempted Murder Of Police Officers In Strabane
Three people have been arrested in Strabane in connection with the attempted murder of two police officers in the town in November 2022. Detectives from the Terrorism Investigation Unit arrested two women, aged 25 and 27, and one man, aged 51, under the Terrorism Act. They have been taken to Musgrave Serious Crime Suite for questioning.
13 December 2022
Man Arrested Over Attempted Murder Of Strabane Police Officers
A 28-year-old man has been arrested in Strabane in connection with the attempted murder of two police officers in the town on Thursday 17 November. The man, detained by detectives from the Terrorism Investigation Unit under the Terrorism Act, was taken to Musgrave Serious Crime Suite for questioning.
23 June 2016
Police Officers Disciplined For Failing To Tell Doctor About Woman's Head Injuries
Two police officers have been disciplined after they failed to let their colleagues and a police doctor know that a woman had sustained a head injury, a Police Ombudsman investigation has concluded. The woman died from bleeding to the brain on 24 February 2014, the day after she suffered the injury.