A MAN who was accused of murdering his wife and two children in Dublin and was due to go on trial next week has been found dead in prison.
Sameer Syed (38) was found in his cell in the Midlands Prison in Portlaoise, Co Laois on Thursday afternoon.
In a statement, the Irish Prison Service said it could confirm "the death of a prisoner in the Midlands Prison".
There are no details on the circumstances surrounding his death.
However, the Irish Prison Service said all deaths in custody are investigated by the service, the Inspector of Prisons and gardaí.
Mr Syed was due to stand trial at the Central Criminal Court next Wednesday for the murder of his wife Seema Banu (37), his daughter Asfira Riza (11) and son Faizan Syed (6) at Llewellyn Court, Rathfarnham, Dublin 16 in October 2020.
Their bodies were found after residents in the estate became concerned when the family hadn’t been seen in several days and alerted the gardaí.
Mr Syed was arrested in November 2020 and charged with three counts of murder at Dun Laoghaire District Court.
The trial was scheduled to begin on 15 June and was expected to last five weeks.
