Toddler dies and mother and child injured during farmhouse stabbing

A toddler has died, and a baby and their mother sustained serious injuries, during a stabbing at a house in Northern Ireland.

Detectives say they are not seeking anybody else in connection with the death at the rural farmhouse some miles outside the Co Antrim town of Larne.

A woman aged in her thirties and the infant are receiving treatment in hospital, police said.

She is a nurse who had moved to the area in the last few months, neighbours said.

Incident at farmhouse in Larne
Incident at farmhouse in Larne

A Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) statement said: “Police can confirm that an investigation has commenced into the circumstances surrounding the death of a young child in the Larne area today.

“A woman in her 30s and a baby are currently receiving hospital treatment for injuries.

“The investigation is at an early stage and police are currently not looking for anyone else in connection with the death.”

A major police and emergency services operation has centred on the property at Bankhill Road throughout Monday.

Neighbours say they heard a helicopter and saw police and ambulances on Monday morning and initially thought it had been a farming accident.

A laneway to the property has been sealed off by officers and forensics experts are gathering evidence.

Neighbour Rhonda Kernohan said: “I heard the sirens and the helicopter, the air ambulance, came and it landed up at the back of the farm.

“We thought it was a farm accident but when we looked out there was a lot of shouting and a lot of police, a lot of ambulances about.”

She added: “This is a quiet, rural, peaceful area.”

Another neighbour said the woman who lived at the house was a “youngish girl”.

They added: “It was very sad. We are feeling absolutely awful, so sad it is terrible.

“The shock of it, when it happens nearly on your doorstep.”

The scene is at a house and outbuildings along a narrow lane high on a hillside overlooking Larne Lough, south of the port town of Larne.

White boilersuit-clad forensics experts combed the area for clues.

Another neighbour said: “It is an absolute shock. We thought it was a farming accident initially. It is a real tragedy.”

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