Larne stabbings: Officers shaken after being confronted with ‘horrific’ scene

DUP man Sammy Wilson made the comments as questions continue to hang over the fate of a woman and child who were involved in the incident.

It unfolded at around 10am on Monday, in a rural townland south of the hamlet of Magheramorne, near Larne Lough.

One child – described simply as “young” by police, but thought to be a toddler – died as a result.

It is believed that, as of Tuesday night, police had still not questioned the woman in her 30s who has been hospitalised as a result of the incident.

She has been named as Fiona Magowan.

The Belfast health trust refused on Tuesday to give any updates on her condition in the Royal Victoria Hospital, or that of her baby, who is also believed to be being treated in the Royal complex – saying this is at the request of the family.

The previous evening, Ms Magowan had been described as being in a critical state. The trust has never given an indication on the state of the baby.

Mr Wilson said on Tuesday: “It’s a huge tragedy. I think people in the area will be stunned by it.

“It’s terrible for any family to have to live with this and I’m sure she [the mother], if she survives, will carry this with her the rest of her life.”

He said he had spoken to police three times since the incident, and had been given no clue about any potential motivation for it.

He also said “the police who attended the scene are quite upset”.

As to how they had described the scene to him, he said simply: “It was horrific.”

It has been difficult to find information about the occupants of the house where the stabbings occurred, with neighbours in the immediate countryside suggesting only that the woman living there was a nurse, and that she, a man, and two children had moved in some time last year.

There are few amenities in Magheramorne; no shops, but a Presbyterian church and an Orange hall.

Extensive enquiries with this church and ones in nearby Ballycarry, as well as people with the surname Magowan in the region, had not turned up anyone who knew the people involved.

Meanwhile police have refused to provide any further details – and would not even confirm the precise spelling of the woman’s surname (sources have variously described it to the News Letter as ‘Magowan’ and ‘McGowan’).

All they said is that they are looking into a young child’s death, adding: “The investigation is at an early stage and police are currently not looking for anyone else in connection with the death.”

Though described as a nurse, authorities have yet to acknowledge where she worked, or what kind of nursing she did.

A Fiona McGowan is registered with the Social Care Council (for social workers) but it is unclear if this is the same person.

It is not believed she worked for the Belfast health trust.

However, the Northern trust (whose area covers where Ms Magowan lived) refused to confirm if she was an employee, citing the ongoing investigation.