Detectives investigating the death of a man believe he was killed in a frenzied knife attack over a late night game of chess.

They believe a violent row erupted over a move and spiralled out of control at the home of the victim, named locally as Thomas O'Gorman.

The 39-year-old researcher was found with multiple stab wounds at the premises in Beech Park Avenue, Castleknock, in north Dublin, in the early hours of Sunday.

Irish police were alerted to the stabbing at around 1.50am and recovered a knife from the scene which has been sealed off for forensic experts to examine.

A Garda source said: "It was a very unpleasant scene for our people to walk into. This was a bizarre killing and the dead man sustained substantial injuries to his body."

It is understood Mr O'Gorman was a former journalist with The Voice Today, a Roman Catholic newspaper.

A graduate of University College Dublin, he had more recently been a researcher with the Dublin-based Catholic lobby group the Iona Institute for seven years, and is believed to have taken in a lodger in recent months to help supplement his income.

David Quinn, director of The Iona Institute, said Mr O'Gorman's friends and colleagues were devastated at his death.

"On behalf of everyone at The Iona Institute, I would like to express our total shock and deep sorrow at the terrible and untimely death of Tom O'Gorman," he said.

"Tom was a friend as well as a work colleague to us all. He was a fond and dear friend and we will all miss him.

"We extend our deepest commiserations to his family and above all to his sister and brother, Catherine and Paul."

A 34-year-old man was arrested at the scene. He is understood to be from Palermo on the Italian island of Sicily.

Police are not looking for anyone else in connection with the death, and are awaiting the results of a post mortem examination.

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