THE JUSTICE MINISTER has said gardaí will engage with police forces in the Middle East, as they pursue the chief suspect in the murder of US woman Jamey Carney in Killarney, Co Kerry.

The man is believed to have fled the country “just before” the 43-year-old mother’s body was found.

Jamey Carney was found dead with severe head injuries in her house off the Muckross Road in Killarney on 7 July. She was originally from New York. 

Gardaí believe the chief suspect went to the Middle East, although it is unclear which part.

Ireland does not have extradition agreements with Jordan or Syria.

Asked what steps the government will take to bring the man back to Ireland if he is in fact in Jordan, justice minister Jim O’Callaghan said gardaí will engage with the police force there.

“It obviously is difficult. I’m not going to try and make it sound easy,” he said.

“If he’s in a country where we don’t have an extradition agreement, it may be difficult to get them returned. ”

The minister said, however, that Ireland has previously extradited a suspected criminal who had fled to the United Arab Emirates, with which Ireland had no agreement with prior.

The man suspected of murdering Jamey Carney is from the Middle East and has been in Ireland for a number of years, where he has been in the international protection system. He hails from a location in the region which has a good connection with Europe, Britain and Ireland.

The fear is that he caught a flight to Turkey and then on to his home country.

O’Callaghan said it is “a difficult situation” for investigators, but “no matter where you are, the gardaí will seek to pursue you”.

“I know from speaking to the commissioner that the gardaí have great connections with other police forces around the world. I know that they will be pursuing every line of inquiry to ensure that if that person is charged with an offence, [they] can be brought to justice here,” he said.

Asked whether Ireland would ask the United States for help in the recent murder case, given Jamey Carney was an American citizen, O’Callaghan said: “The gardaí and I, if I’m required to provide any assistance, will use whatever measure we can to ensure that if a person is charged, that that person is brought back to Ireland to face those charges before the Irish courts.”

Gardaí generally cannot identify suspects publicly unless it is absolutely needed to assist. Their argument for not identifying publicly is that it may endanger their investigation in the long term and any potential court cases that follow.