Dawn raids on suspects in spate of robberies

UPWARDS of 50 gardaí carried out dawn raids yesterday on the homes of a gang whose members are suspected of being involved in scores of robberies in Cork, Limerick and Galway.

The crimes included a ram-raid in Clonakilty, Co Cork, where €40,000 was snatched.

Four men in their late teens and early 20s were arrested during the raids which were co-ordinated by Cork-based Detective Superintendent Tom Hayes and Superintendent Vincent Duggan. Gardaí went to a number of addresses in Limerick city and county where they arrested the men, who are alleged to have started their crime spree last April when they carried out the ram raid on a business in Clonakilty.