Gardaí have arrested three men over a Co Sligo burglary that left 73-year-old pensioner Tom Niland on life support in hospital.
The aggravated burglary in Skreen, Co Sligo on January 18th led to a wide-scale Garda investigation, with gardaí previously saying “no stone will be left unturned”.
Officers have now arrested three men in the northwest region on suspicion of the burglary.
The men, one aged in his 50s, one in his 30s and one in his 20s, are currently detained under the provisions of Section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act, 1984 at separate Garda stations in the Sligo and Leitrim Division.
“No further information is available at this time,” a Garda statement said.
Attack
Retired farmer Mr Niland had been watching television alone at his home on the Sligo to Ballina road on the evening of January 18th when a gang of masked men called to his door at about 7pm.
The gang badly beat the bachelor, who farmed from his mid-teens until his retirement seven years ago, before robbing hundreds of euro in cash.
Gardaí were alerted by neighbours after Mr Niland managed to crawl from his home to seek help from passing motorists.
He was then transferred to Sligo University Hospital, where his condition quickly deteriorated.
A cousin of Mr Niland previously told of the sense of helplessness his family has experienced in the wake of the “frenzied attack.”
