T

THE CASE has been cold for more than 33 years but the re-opened Kerry Babies investigation already appears to be gathering significant momentum.

The disclosure on Tuesday that DNA evidence has conclusively proved that Joanne Hayes was not the mother of Baby John has set in motion a sequence of events that have dominated the news all week.

Gardaí apologised to Ms Hayes for their handling of the case against her in 1984, during which the Abbeydorney woman claims she was coerced into confessing to the gruesome murder of a five-day old infant.

Speaking on behalf of the Gardaí, Superintendent Flor Murphy said it was a “matter of significant regret for An Garda Síochána that it has taken such a long time for it to be confirmed that Ms Hayes is not the mother of Baby John.”

“On behalf of An Garda Síochána, I would like to sincerely apologise to Ms Hayes for that, as well as the awful stress and pain she has been put through as a result of the original investigation into this matter, which fell well short of the required standards.”

The case was officially re-opened with Supt. Murphy reassuring the public that “this will be a thorough and professional investigation.”

On Wednesday, Taoiseach Leo Varadkar apologised on behalf of the State, saying Ms Hayes was “badly treated by our State and by our society in a way that so many other women have been in the past and that needs to change".

"I can't offer compensation here now,” Varadkar continued, “but it's something that I think we can discuss with her representatives in the period ahead."

Later that day, the Minister for Justice, Charlie Flanagan, said that compensation should be dealt with in a manner that was “private… and speedy”.

Progress continued at a steady rate on Thursday as Gardaí announced that they are now seeking DNA samples from people in the Iveragh Peninsula in the hope of finding an elusive missing link.

Detectives have also appealed directly to Baby John’s mother to come forward.

Although Gardaí have confirmed that they are not following a definite line of inquiry, a number of people have already contacted the incident room since the new investigation was launched on Tuesday.