Three hotel workers have been arrested in Mauritius in connection with the murder of Tyrone manager Mickey Harte’s daughter Michaela.
The staff members from the hotel where Michaela was strangled are due in court today charged with her murder.
The 27-year-old’s body was found by her husband in the bathtub of their hotel bedroom on Monday. Police think her killers put her in the bath to make it appear that she had died from a suicide drowning.
Last night, Mr Harte described his daughter as a “gem” and said that her death was “too horrible to contemplate”.
“It’s the worst of the worst, our hearts are just too broken,” he added.
She was a beautiful girl. She couldn’t be better, couldn’t be nicer. God love her, we are so, so sorry. Our hearts are broken.
“I just want to say that I know lots of people have had this experience before and I’ve tried to empathise with them. But you can’t get the feeling unless you’ve been there, and God save anybody from having to be in this place.”
Police think more than one attacker killed Michaela after she surprised them in her room, as data from the door’s electronic lock showed that her attacker entered the room at 2.42pm, two minutes before Michaela.
Michaela and her husband of 11 days John McAreavey had been eating lunch at a poolside restaurant when she went to the room to get some biscuits.
It is believed that the intruder went to the room to commit a theft and that they killed Michaela because they didn’t want her to identify them to police.
John McAreavey found his wife’s body in the bathtub just after 3pm when he became concerned that she had not returned to the restaurant.
The hotel doctor administered first aid but it was too late.
Down GAA player McAreavey had celebrated his marriage to the former Rose of Tralee contestant at St Malachy’s Church, Ballymacilroy, in Co Tyrone on December 30.
The couple had started their honeymoon in Dubai before flying to Mauritius, where they had planned to remain until this Sunday.
