Witness sought after death of Yves Sakila - who was pinned down by security guards in Dublin

Police investigating the death of a Congolese man after he was pinned down by security guards in Dublin city centre want to speak to a woman knocked to the ground during the incident.

Yves Sakila, 35, was pronounced dead in hospital after he was detained over the alleged shoplifting of a bottle of perfume at the Arnotts department store in Henry Street on 15 May.

His death sparked protests after a video of the incident was shared online.

Gardai said they have received a completed post-mortem examination report but are not releasing details "for operational reasons".

They said a male and a female were knocked to the ground during the incident and are yet to speak to the woman.

She is described as white, with dark hair, in her late teens to early twenties, wearing a khaki-coloured waist-length coat, black crop t-shirt, blue jeans cut at the knees and black Adidas trainers.

Gardai said that after being knocked to the ground, "she got up herself and stayed around for a few minutes before making her way to O'Connell Street".

A Garda Síochana spokesperson said: "Investigating gardaí believe there are also still other persons who were in the area at the time who have not come forwarded to speak with the investigating team."

Following Mr Sakila's death, Arnotts said in a statement it was "deeply saddened" and was co-operating with gardai, as well as conducting a full review with the firm that provides its security services.

John Gerard Cullen, a solicitor for the Sakila family, previously said he understood that Mr Sakila was a vulnerable person as he had been homeless and had drug issues.

He said Mr Sakila had a non-derogable right to life - but had died "over an alleged bottle of perfume".

Sky News

(c) Sky News 2026: Witness sought after death of Yves Sakila - who was pinned down by security guards in Dublin

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