A man has appeared in court in Belfast charged with the murder of a woman in Limerick city.
The body of 27-year-old Geila Ibram, from Romania, was found in the Riverdock apartment block on Dock Road on Tuesday afternoon.
A man was arrested and questioned by the PSNI in Belfast on Thursday night.
Habib Shamel, 26, an Afghan national, appeared in Belfast Magistrates' Court by video link this morning.
Speaking through an interpreter, he confirmed that he understood the charge against him.
A PSNI detective sergeant told the court that Ms Ibram died as the result of multiple stab wounds in a "vicious and frenzied attack".
He said he could connect the defendant to the offence.
The court was told that CCTV footage recovered by gardaí shows Ms Ibram and Mr Shamel having a conversation to arrange a sexual exchange on Tuesday morning.
The police officer said CCTV cameras also showed the defendant entering the apartment where the victim was found at 1.28pm on Tuesday and leaving again just over a minute later.
He said Mr Shamel suffered an injury to his hand and had sought treatment in University Hospital Limerick before travelling to Belfast with a companion by bus.
The court was told the 26-year-old was arrested by detectives while travelling in a vehicle in the Malone Road area of south Belfast on Thursday evening.
The officer said Mr Shamel had arrived in Dublin from Afghanistan in October 2020 and claimed political asylum and had the right to be resident until next year.
He was remanded in custody to appear in court again via video link on 2 May.
Mr Shamel will face trial in court in Northern Ireland under specific laws for extraterritorial offences.
He has been charged under the Criminal Jurisdiction Act 1975, which covers serious criminal offences, including murder, committed in another jurisdiction.
The legislation allows the PSNI to follow the criminal justice process in Northern Ireland if a suspect has fled there from a different jurisdiction in which an offence took place.
Gardaí said they have completed technical examinations of two separate scenes and continue to liaise with the PSNI.
Both gardaí and the PSNI are continuing to appeal for information that can assist with the investigation.
