GARDAÍ investigating the murder of eight-year-old Kyran Durnin have arrested a man in connection with the case.
The man has been arrested “on suspicion of murder” gardaí confirmed in a statement this morning.
He is being held at a Garda station in the east of the country, they added.
The police force has also begun searches at two houses in Drogheda, Co. Louth.
Kyran was initially reported missing from Drogheda in August but in October, gardaí revealed they were treating the case as a murder investigation.
Gardaí said there was no evidence to suggest Kyran was alive and also believed he had been missing for around two years.
They subsequently carried out a search of his former family home in Dundalk, Co. Louth and at nearby wasteland.
Today two new searches are underway at “domestic homes” in the town.
“The purpose of these searches is to discover any evidence which might provide us with information as to Kyran’s current whereabouts or what has happened to Kyran,” they said.
They have appealed for anyone with any information about the disappearance of Kyran, who they now presume to have been murdered, to come forward.
“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,” they state.