Two raiders give themselves up

TWO gardaí confronted two armed raiders outside a bank and, after a stand-off, managed to persuade them to hand over a weapon and give themselves up.

Gardaí are still hunting a third member of the gang who fled the scene of the attempted robbery in south Dublin early yesterday.

The gardaí, experienced female members, went to the scene after a member of the public raised the alarm.

The three raiders, at least one armed with a handgun, had grabbed a bank employee as he arrived for work at the Bank of Ireland in Tallaght.

However, within minutes, the two gardaí in the patrol car were alerted and arrived at the bank close to the Iceland store near Tallaght village. They called for back-up before confronting two of the masked men as they attempted to escape.

Inspector Eamon Dolan, of Tallaght Garda Station, said there was a confrontation and a short stand-off before the pair gave themselves up.

“It was excellent work from everyone involved,” said Inspector Dolan.

A garda helicopter was deployed to help search for the third person.

The two arrested, aged 23 and 33, were detained under Section 30 of the Offences Against the State Act and can be questioned for up to 72 hours. They were being questioned last night in Tallaght Garda Station.