Bank chiefs face pressure from Ahern over raids

JUSTICE Minister Dermot Ahern will pile pressure on banking chiefs today to take more robust measures to prevent bank raids amid concerns individual bank staff are being allowed to handle excessive amounts of cash.

The move follows the latest tiger kidnapping which saw a Kilkenny Bank of Ireland employee, his wife and their three young children, suffer a terrifying ordeal at the hands of an armed gang who tried to force the father to take €3 million from the bank where he worked.

Mr Ahern is keen to prevent gangs from stockpiling their drug and gun empires with the proceeds from the recent spate of tiger kidnappings.