Postmortem shows Ukrainian man did not die from assault injuries in Monaghan

Gardaí believe a man who died in an apartment in Co Monaghan at the weekend had suffered what appeared to be assault injuries but died from natural causes. Though the man’s death was not being treated as murder, a criminal investigation was continuing to determine how he suffered his apparent assault injuries.

The dead man was named locally as Mykola Dernovi, a 46 year old who had come from Ukraine to live in Ireland a number of years ago. He was living in a property in The Diamond area of Clones and died there on Saturday night.

The final results of a postmortem examination were awaited until late on Monday to determine if Mr Dermovi died from his injuries or if he suffered a medical episode that brought about his death. When the results were confirmed, it was found he had died from natural causes.

However, gardaí believe he was assaulted on Saturday night before the emergency services were alerted as his condition deteriorated. Paramedics arrived at the property on The Diamond and tried to save him but were unsuccessful in those efforts.

Mr Dernovi was pronounced dead at the scene and gardaí were called in, with a criminal investigation getting under way immediately.

Gardaí sealed off the scene and began contacting other people living in the building and in nearby properties to determine whether they had seen or heard anything around the time Mr Dermovi died, at about 10pm on Saturday.

Gardaí are keen to speak to a man known to the victim, and who is also from abroad. They believe that man may have panicked and left Clones, which is just over 1km from the Border, possibly on Saturday night after Mr Dermovi’s condition deteriorated to the extent he needed treatment.

The property where Mr Dermovi died was sealed off overnight into Sunday morning, with his remains left in situ, pending the arrival of a pathologist and the Garda Technical Bureau.

“Gardaí continue to investigate the circumstances surrounding the discovery of the body of a male in an apartment at The Diamond in Clones, Co Monaghan, on the night of Saturday, June 1st,” the Garda said in reply to queries on Monday night. “A postmortem has been completed, the results of which are not being released for operational reasons.

“An Garda Síochána continue to appeal to any persons with any information on this incident or an alleged assault on the deceased to contact investigating gardaí at Clones Garda station 047 51025, the Garda Confidential Phone number 1800 666 111 or any Garda station.”