Diane Dodds: Gardaí contacted over tweet targeting the DUP MLA

Police investigating online abuse mocking the late son of Democratic Unionist Party assembly member Diane Dodds have contacted gardaí for assistance.

It is understood officers believe the person responsible is based in the Republic of Ireland.

The Upper Bann representative's son, Andrew, was born with spina bifida and died in 1998, aged eight.

Mrs Dodds was targeted by an anonymous - and later deleted - Twitter account.

Irish broadcaster RTÉ, which first reported the garda connection on Saturday, said the Police Service of Northern Ireland's (PSNI) cyber crime unit had identified the account holder south of the border.

Mrs Dodds received messages of support from other politicians following the incident on New Year's Eve.

She described the online abuse as "callous and malicious".

PSNI officers interviewed Mrs Dodds about the tweet at her constituency office in County Down on Tuesday.

A spokesperson for Twitter said the company wanted to "reiterate our commitment to ensuring that Twitter doesn't become a forum that facilitates abuse".

The PSNI has been contacted for comment.