'Deepa left us too soon': Brother of mother of one killed in Cork is 'deeply humbled' by repatriation fundraiser

The brother of a 38-year-old Indian woman, who died a violent death in Cork last month, has said that he is "deeply humbled" by an outpouring of support which has facilitated the repatriation of the mother of one back to her native country for a memorial service next week.

€25,000 was raised on an iDonate page to pay for the transportation of the remains of Deepa Dinamani home. The fund was also set up to assist Ullas Dinamani, the only sibling of the deceased, in costs associated with travelling to Ireland and bringing his five-year-old nephew back to India to be reunited with his grandparents.

A service for the highly respected chartered accountant will take place on Friday, August 11, at Hosur, Tamil Nadu in India.

Mr Dinamani said that he wanted to thank the community in Cork from "the bottom of his heart" for what had been done for his family after his sister was found dead on July 14 at her home in Cardinal Court in Wilton on the southside of the city.

"Thank you to all of you for having us in your prayers. I am so grateful and I will never ever forget how the community joined hands and assisted a person from India in this difficult situation.

"It is because of the hard work of many of you that I will be able to take my deceased sister and her son back to India where he will be able to perform the last rites of his mother.

"Life is very short and unpredictable. Deepa left us too soon. To wave her goodbye for the last time, the family is arranging a memorial service in her loving memory," he said.

Mr Dinamani said that he was particularly grateful to Cork TDs Mick Barry (Socialist Party) and Michael Creed (Fine Gael), the Embassy of India in Dublin, Tusla officials, solicitors in Cork, employers and friends of his sister, the funeral director and mortician, and the manager of Bank of Ireland in UCC who assisted him with the fundraising account.

Mr Dinamani said that the family were comforted by the actions of the Indian community in Cork who held a candle lit vigil in the wake of the death of Deepa. He also praised the Rosa group who commemorated the death of his sister.

"I would also like to thank the action group who encouraged me and gave me a sense of confidence to overcome this tough journey. They worked voluntarily and did a humongous task from the very start of liaising with all the authorities on behalf of my family in India."

Meanwhile, the 41-year-old husband of the deceased Regin Parithapara Rajan is in custody charged her with her murder. DPP directions are awaited in the case and Mr Rajan is due back in Cork District Court on August 28 next.

Deepa Dinamani had moved to Cork to April to begin work as a senior funds manager at Alter Domus in Cork Airport Business Park. Her employers said that Deepa was a "wonderful person and colleague" who will be much missed.

The alarm was raised on the evening of July 14 when she failed to pick up her son who was in the house of a friend having attended a summer camp.

Her death caused immense shock among members of the tight knit Indian community in Cork. Two days after she was found dead 150 people attended a candlelight vigil outside her home. They put flowers in front of a picture of Deepa which had been placed on the doorstep of a red brick terraced house she was renting in a quite cul de sac in Wilton.

Deepa was a native of Kerala in Southern India. Cork Pravasi Malayali, along with the World Malayalee Council Cork and Coinns Cork (Cork Indian Nurses) are among those who fundraised to pay for the repatriation of Deepa and her son to India. The three groups fundraised alongside members of the Cork Indian Community Facebook group and the Irish Malayalee.