Man (30s) due in court in connection with death of American man at Ballyfin hotel in Laois

The victim, a US national who was in his 60s, had only flown into Ireland a number of hours before he was ­allegedly attacked in a bathroom of the luxurious ­Ballyfin Demesne hotel.

He was found dead in the leisure area of the five-star hotel and was the victim of a "sustained" assault, gardaí believe.

The incident happened at around 8pm on Tuesday.

Hotel staff found the man's body, and emergency services quickly rushed to the scene and the suspect was arrested.

The suspect, who is in his 30s, required medical treatment in hospital in the aftermath of his arrest.

He is due to appear at Portlaoise District Court this morning at 10.30am.

He was not deemed fit to be interviewed by gardaí until late yesterday morning.

Investigations have established that the suspect had recently required treatment for medical issues at a hospital in Dublin.

It is unclear where he met his alleged victim earlier on Tuesday after the man had flown into the country from the US.

But both men then checked in together into the well-known Co Laois hotel where the fatal assault happened.

It is understood that the assault was "sustained" in nature.

The case is being described as "extremely tragic".

The services of the Garda Technical Bureau and Office of the State Pathologist were requested.

A senior investigating officer has been appointed to lead the investigation and an incident room has been established at Portlaoise garda station.

A family liaison officer will be ­appointed to support the family of the deceased, who were notified of the man's death in the early hours of yesterday.

The hotel is one of Ireland's most exclusive accommodation offerings, with celebrities regularly staying in the luxury hotel.

In July, the Regency mansion and former boarding school was named the United Kingdom and Ireland's No1 resort.

There was deep shock in the local community yesterday as news of the death spread.

Local publican Ger Whelan told the Irish Independent there was a lot of ­garda activity in the quiet area on Tuesday night.

His pub is a short distance from the entrance to the upmarket hotel.

There is shock. You don't go in there without a booking

"I heard it on the news this morning, a hotel in the north of the county," he said.

"My wife was working here last night and she said to me this morning, 'there was a lot of activity with guards around the area'.

"But we hadn't a clue until the news this morning."

Mr Whelan said the hotel is a well-regarded employer and many of the staff are from Laois.

He added: "There is shock. You don't go in there without a booking.

"There is no way you'd get past that gate unless you're either booked for dinner, you are staff, or you're booked to stay. That's the only way you'd get past that gate."

Ballyfin Demesne's secluded setting, luxurious accommodation and five-star welcome have attracted high-profile celebrity weddings down through the years.

Kim Kardashian and Kanye West famously honeymooned there in 2014 after marrying in Italy, although the couple had actually stayed there previously.

George and Amal Clooney rented out the entire property in 2019 for a ­reunion with George's Irish cousins, and Ballyfin was named as the top hotel in the world to make you feel special in the Hideaway Report's 2018 Members' Choice Award.

The estate's original residents were the Coote family.

Ballyfin then came into the ownership of the Patrician Brothers, who ran it as a school.

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After that school closed, the house was later bought and restored over a nine-year period by the American electronics tycoon Frederick Krehbiel, now deceased.

His sons, Liam and Jay Krehbiel, are the current owners.

The hotel opened in 2011 and offers guests activities including carriage rides, picnics, fishing, archery, clay pigeon shooting and butler service.

The hotel is set back from the main gates by a 2.4km-long driveway.

The restoration of the hotel included adding six bedrooms and millions of euro were invested as part of the ­refurbishment.

Ballyfin Demesne did not reply to the Irish Independent's request for ­comment yesterday.