Danielle McLaughlin: CCTV shows Goa murder victim's final moments

CCTV footage has emerged showing the final movements of an Irish woman murdered in Goa, in southern India.

Danielle McLaughlin's body was discovered on Tuesday, a mile from the popular tourist resort in Canacona where she was last seen.

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McLaughlin, 28, from County Donegal in Ireland, was travelling on a British passport when she arrived in India in February.

She was last seen at a party on Palolem beach on Monday night, celebrating the Holi festival. Her naked body was found by a farmer in an open field close to the beach the following morning. Police said she had sustained injuries to her head and face.

In the CCTV footage, McLaughlin is seen walking in the street with a man behind her, before she turns as if to speak to him.

Police have charged local Vikat Bhagat, 24, with her murder, saying he is the man in a white T-shirt seen in the footage. They also say he had been seen with her at the beach party.

In addition, officers have seized a scooter and clothes reported to have bloodstains on them.

A source involved in the investigation told the BBC that detectives were confident Bhagat was the "main culprit" in the killing and said he had "confessed" under interrogation.

Deputy Superintendent Sammy Tavares told reporters had they had arrested a suspect who had "confessed to raping the victim and later killing her in order to hide his identity".

A post-mortem has been carried out to determine if McLaughlin had been sexually assaulted.

McLaughlin’s mother, Andrea Brannigan, paid tribute to her daughter, saying she would be “sadly missed”, reports RTE.

In a written statement, she said: "The family would like to express our thanks to all who have got in touch since receiving this awful news.

"As you can expect we are finding it very difficult at this trying time.”

The Hindustan Times says the murder is the "latest in a series of crimes that has blighted the picturesque state’s reputation as a tourist haven".

In 2008, British schoolgirl Scarlett Keeling, 15, drowned on a Goan beach after allegedly being given drugs and sexually assaulted before being left for dead.

Two men were later acquitted of her rape and murder.