Hunt for armed gang after shootout
As armed gardaí, air support and sniffer dogs descended on the quiet Co Cavan village of Virginia yesterday, a search of the cottage revealed an arsenal of more than 20 rifles, shotguns, sawn-off shotguns and handguns along with telescopic sights and a large quantity of ammunition.
A garda helicopter hovered over the countryside, helping search for at least three and possibly four armed fugitives who fled the scene of the shootout.
The focus of the hunt later switched to a wood in Kells, Co Meath, following the discovery of a stolen white Citreon van, registration 94 D 47198, believed to have been used as a getaway vehicle.
Six people were questioned last night after a series of captures and raids following Monday night’s dramatic events, when a routine break-in report led gardaí to the hideout and main arms dump of a Dublin crime gang known as the Westies.
It all began with a call to Bailieboro Garda Station before 10pm on Monday.
An off-duty garda, who lives just minutes away in Virginia, was asked to check reports of a break-in at the farmhouse.
Suspicious after spotting a broken window, he let himself into the house and was confronted by five men.
They attempted to bundle him into their car and escape.
At that point, a second patrol, an armed detective sergeant and one other garda, arrived at the scene.
Chief Superintendent Michael Finnegan, who is heading the search for the fugitives, said two of the suspects were grabbed when the back-up arrived.
Then a sixth appeared and fired off at least one round from a handgun. Fire was then returned.
In the confusion, five of the six managed to escape but one, a 28-year-old man, was held and arrested.
A search was launched and one man was arrested in Virginia while a third was found hiding in a graveyard early yesterday morning. Gardaí also carried out a raid on what one source said was the Navan home of “known associates” of the gang. Three people were arrested.
The fugitives are believed to be members of the northwest Dublin gang, which is suspected of being involved in a recent series of raids in the Louth/Meath area.
One of the leaders of the gang was reported to have moved to Cavan recently.
Gardaí are also investigating whether they were involved in the raid on a gun dealer’s home in north Co Dublin last week.
John Walls, his wife Philomena and their son were tied up as four masked men ransacked their home and stole 14 shotguns, a rifle and ammunition.
Ballistics experts are checking whether any of the arms found in the Co Cavan farmhouse match those stolen in the Balbriggan burglary.
SHORTLY before 10pm on Monday gardaí at Bailieboro receive a call about a suspected break-in at a farmhouse in Virginia. They make an unsuccessful attempt to contact the Dublin-based owner of the house.
Minutes later, a garda based in Kells station, who lives in the village, is asked to check out the report and is told another unit from Bailieboro, including an armed detective sergeant, is on the way.
AT 10.15PM, the garda, checking the house, finds a window broken and decides to go in to investigate. He is confronted by five men. The garda is grabbed and brought outside to a waiting car. As the gang attempt to bundle him into the car, a second garda patrol arrives. In the confusion, the three gardaí manage to grab two of the men.
A sixth man arrives and fires one or two shots either in the direction of the gardaí or into the air. The detective sergeant fires back. Five of the men flee in different directions, but one is held by the first garda to arrive at the scene. A full-scale search operation is launched.
OVERNIGHT, gardaí carry out searches of the surrounding area. One person, believed to be a male, is arrested in Virginia. A search of the house at the centre of the shoot-out reveals a large amount of ammunition. A van is stolen from a garage just outside the village.
AT DAYBREAK, the garda helicopter is scrambled as teams of armed gardaí and sniffer dogs descend on the quiet village. A third person, again believed to be a male, is discovered hiding in a graveyard in the area and arrested. Three people, one man and two women, are arrested at a house in Navan.
YESTERDAY, the search for at least three, possibly four, suspects continued and widened beyond Co Cavan. Scenes of crime officers carried out a forensic examination of the house. The six arrested are questioned at stations in Navan, Ashbourne, Kells and Monaghan. An appeal for information about a stolen white Citroen van is issued.
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