Danielle McLaughlin: CCTV shows Goa murder victim's final moments
Irish woman seen being followed by a man hours before her body is found close to Canacona tourist resort
CCTV footage has emerged showing the final movements of an Irish woman murdered in Goa, in southern India.
Danielle McLaughlin's body was discovered on Tuesday, a mile from the popular tourist resort in Canacona where she was last seen.
[[{"type":"media","view_mode":"content_original","fid":"109725","attributes":{"class":"media-image"}}]]
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
McLaughlin, 28, from County Donegal in Ireland, was travelling on a British passport when she arrived in India in February.
She was last seen at a party on Palolem beach on Monday night, celebrating the Holi festival. Her naked body was found by a farmer in an open field close to the beach the following morning. Police said she had sustained injuries to her head and face.
In the CCTV footage, McLaughlin is seen walking in the street with a man behind her, before she turns as if to speak to him.
Police have charged local Vikat Bhagat, 24, with her murder, saying he is the man in a white T-shirt seen in the footage. They also say he had been seen with her at the beach party.
In addition, officers have seized a scooter and clothes reported to have bloodstains on them.
A source involved in the investigation told the BBC that detectives were confident Bhagat was the "main culprit" in the killing and said he had "confessed" under interrogation.
Deputy Superintendent Sammy Tavares told reporters had they had arrested a suspect who had "confessed to raping the victim and later killing her in order to hide his identity".
A post-mortem has been carried out to determine if McLaughlin had been sexually assaulted.
McLaughlin’s mother, Andrea Brannigan, paid tribute to her daughter, saying she would be “sadly missed”, reports RTE.
In a written statement, she said: "The family would like to express our thanks to all who have got in touch since receiving this awful news.
"As you can expect we are finding it very difficult at this trying time.”
The Hindustan Times says the murder is the "latest in a series of crimes that has blighted the picturesque state’s reputation as a tourist haven".
In 2008, British schoolgirl Scarlett Keeling, 15, drowned on a Goan beach after allegedly being given drugs and sexually assaulted before being left for dead.
Two men were later acquitted of her rape and murder.
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
India elections start amid violence, hate speech accusations
Talking Points Narendra Modi seeks a third term while critics worry about the future of the country's democracy
By Joel Mathis, The Week US Published
-
'Biden is smart to keep the border-security pressure on'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By Harold Maass, The Week US Published
-
Bird flu worries mount as virus found in milk, cows
Speed Read The FDA found traces of the virus in pasteurized grocery store milk
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Sydney mall attacker may have targeted women
Speed Read Police commissioner says gender of victims is 'area of interest' to investigators
By Julia O'Driscoll, The Week UK Published
-
Why are kidnappings in Nigeria on the rise again?
Today's Big Question Hundreds of children and displaced people are missing as kidnap-for-ransom 'bandits' return
By Julia O'Driscoll, The Week UK Published
-
Deaths of Jesse Baird and Luke Davies hang over Sydney's Mardi Gras
The Explainer Police officer, the former partner of TV presenter victim, charged with two counts of murder after turning himself in
By Austin Chen, The Week UK Published
-
How the idyllic Galapagos Islands became staging post in world drug trade
Under the radar Ecuador's crackdown on gang violence forces drug traffickers into Pacific routes to meet cocaine demand
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
Armed gangs, prison breaks and on-air hostages: how Ecuador was plunged into crisis
The Explainer Gangs launch deadly revenge after president declares state of emergency following escape of feared drug boss from prison
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
Ecuador tips toward chaos amid prison breaks, armed TV takeover
Speed Read New President Daniel Noboa authorized the military to 'neutralize' powerful drug-linked gangs after they unleashed violence and terror across Ecuador
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Prague shooting: student kills 14 people at university
Speed reads Police believe suspect, who killed himself, may have shot his father before carrying out mass murder
By Arion McNicoll, The Week UK Published
-
Ex-US diplomat confessed spying for Cuba to undercover agent, FBI says
Speed Read DOJ says former US ambassador Manuel Rocha perpetrated 'one of the highest-reaching and longest-lasting infiltrations of the United States government by a foreign agent'
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published