Search for baby maybe a sick hoax

A CALLOUS hoaxer was believed to be behind the telephone calls that resulted in more than 40 gardaí searching 2,600 Ballymun flats for an abandoned newborn baby.

Last night, a spokesperson at garda headquarters in the Phoenix Park said they had not yet quantified what the three-day intensive operation by between 40 and 50 gardaí had cost the taxpayer, but hundreds of garda man-hours had been spent.

The distress calls were made on a mobile phone and were thought to have originated from outside the Dublin area.