Gang leaders hire drug addicts for armed robberies
Pictures of the 80 have been posted on a board in the operations room used by a team of 25 detectives charged with hunting down those responsible for nearly 40, mostly cash in transit, armed robberies this year.
Gangs from north and south Dublin are thought to be responsible for the majority of the raids, which have netted the criminals at least €2 million.
Chief Supt Martin Donnellan, who heads the National Bureau of Criminal Investigation (NBCI), warned someone could be killed if the trend in armed robberies continued.
“These people are very, very dangerous,” he said.
He said drug addicts were being used by gang leaders to carry out the raids, a situation the senior garda described as “frightening”.
The increase in bank machines, which are now in supermarkets, shops and filling stations, is fuelling the rise in robberies.
Eight people were arrested by local gardaí on the back of information received from the Operation Delivery team, which is made up of members of the NBCI, backed up by the armed Emergency Response Unit.
The Criminal Assets Bureau is also involved in Operation Delivery, with members tracking the proceeds of the robberies. Detectives believe the gangs will attempt to convert the cash to property.
Of the eight, five men and three women, seven were released and files sent to the Director of Public Prosecutions. One was charged with robbery.
Chief Supt Donnellan has asked gun owners to secure weapons in their homes. Some of the robberies were committed using guns and cars stolen from the homes of people with licensed firearms.
He said gangs will burgle a house, steal guns and a car. The vehicle will then be stashed in a hospital or apartment block car park, to be picked up and used for the robbery.
The public has also been asked to be vigilant and report anything suspicious, particularly near bank machines as potential armed raiders carry out reconnaissance before a robbery.
The substantial rise in the number of cash deliveries has not been matched by an increase in garda and army protection.
Army personnel escorted 2,335 cash deliveries in 2003, down nearly 200 on the previous year. The cost to the Defence Forces was €6.64m, yet they received just €2.86 from financial institutions.
