Man due to face trial for the murders of his wife and kids found dead in prison

Sameer Syed (37) was discovered unresponsive in the Midlands Prison after 3pm today.

He was suspected of the murder of his wife Seema Banu (37), daughter Asfira (11) and son Faizan (6), in October 2020.

They were killed at their home in Llewellyn Court, Ballinteer, in south Dublin.

All three had been strangled and it was suspected ligatures were used in their murders.

Following a garda investigation Syed, of Grosvenor Lodge, in Rathmines, was charged with three counts of murder.

The trial had been due to start before the Central Criminal Court next week.

An investigation is ongoing into the circumstances surrounding his death by the Irish Prison Service (IPS) but it's understood at this stage no third-party involvement is suspected.

A spokesman told Independent.ie: "The Irish Prison Service can confirm the death of a prisoner in the Midlands Prison [today].

"All deaths in custody are investigated by the Irish Prison Service, the Inspector of Prisons and An Garda Síochána, where circumstances warrant.

"The cause of death is determined by the Coroner Office," the spokesman added.

Syed had previously been charged with assaulting his wife, prior to her killing, and had been due to attend a court hearing in relation to that matter the week of the murders.

In the aftermath of the gruesome discoveries a garda alert was issued for Syed and he was later arrested and had been in custody ever since.

In media interviews following the murders he said he wished he woke up every day thinking his family were still with him.

“If there was somehow, someway I could get everything back, if it was possible to go back in time and just get everything back, if was possible I would like to do it.

“If God gave me one wish, only one wish in my life, I want to go back and be with my family happy.

“Every day I think it’s a nightmare and if I wake up everything will be like before. I get up and think it’s just some bad dream. I get up and think things are back to normal. I talk to my wife and kids everyday,” he said.

Syed previously appeared in court via video link for a previous hearing relating to the case.

A trial date of June 15 had been set with the case expected to last up to five weeks.