Police say accused confessed to Michaela Harte killing

Police in Mauritius have said that one of the three men charged in connection with the murder of Michaela McAreavey has confessed to the killing.

Mrs McAreavey, 27, daughter of Tyrone Gaelic football boss Mickey Harte, was found murdered in her honeymoon hotel room on the island on Monday.

Avinash Treebhoowoon, 29, appeared in court on Wednesday, along with two others.

Police told the BBC on Thursday he had confessed to the killing.

It followed the revelation that a lawyer for Raj Theekoy, who is charged with conspiracy to murder, said his client had spoken to police and implicated the other two men.

Sandip Moneea, 41, and Mr Treebhoowoon appeared in court on Wednesday accused of her murder.

All three were remanded in police custody for a week and will return to court next Wednesday, when they are expected either to be formally charged or released.

BBC Northern Ireland reporter, Mervyn Jess, who is in Mauritius, outlined the latest development on Thursday.

"This morning, the police say one of the men who is charged with the murder, Avinash Treebhoowoon, has come out and confessed, the police say, to the killing," he said.

Sandip Moneea, 41, Raj Theekoy, 33, and Avinash Treebhoowoon, 29, have been charged over the killing

"Police officers we have spoken to today say they are very pleased with the way this investigation is going and they think they are close to wrapping up this initial stage of the investigation.

"It will then move on to the preparing of evidence and the preparing of documents to go to the Director of Public Prosecutions on the island before any court case is heard."

He added that anyone convicted of murder in the "higher court" in Mauritius could face up to 47 years in prison, but that in the "lower court" a conviction of manslaughter carried a total sentence of up to 18 years in jail.

The body of Mrs McAreavey is expected to arrive in Northern Ireland from Mauritius on Friday.

It is understood her family hope to hold her funeral next Monday - in the same County Tyrone church where she married on 30 December.

'She is my life'

On Wednesday evening, a police chief in Mauritius told the Press Association that skin tissue found under the fingernails of Mrs McAreavey could prove crucial to the police case against the three men charged over her killing.

Mrs McAreavey's husband, John, has described her as "his rock".

He said their hopes, dreams and future were gone and he had been left heartbroken and totally devastated.

"I love my wife, very, very much and my world revolved around her.

"I can't describe in words how lost I feel as Michaela is not just the light of my life - she is my life," Mr McAreavey said.

The funeral mass is expected to take place at St Malachy's in Ballymacilroy near the Harte family home in County Tyrone.