Gardaí raid 120 homes in biggest swoop yet

OPERATION Platinum — the single-biggest offensive against organised crime outside of Dublin — began at first light yesterday.

The scale of the operation became apparent to morning commuters when they encountered armed Garda road blocks on all the main city routes.

More than 250 gardaí, assisted by specialist units from Dublin, carried out raids on 120 private houses and more than 20 business premises in planned operations across the city. While the thrust of Operation Platinum centred on Limerick, raids also took place in Clare and Tipperary. A number of houses in Dublin were also searched.