10 suspected teen gang members held after early morning raid

Gardaí are hoping to bring charges against 10 suspected members of a teenage gang responsible for violent robberies and serious assaults on people in central Dublin.

The teenagers arrested are aged between 14 and 19 and include seven boys and three girls. All are Irish.

They were picked up in a co-ordinated early morning swoop on addresses in the north and south city areas.

A total of 14 searches were carried out and 10 arrests made.

The operation was led by officers at Pearse Street Garda Station, who were investigating a number of robberies from the person and assaults causing harm in the Dublin 2 area over the current summer period.

All but one of the offences occurred in July and the crimes were concentrated in central Dublin, in the Temple Bar, Dame St, and Grafton St areas.

“They were targeting people out socialising, after a few pints, that kind of thing,” said a Garda source.

He said mobile phones were often the target of the robberies, which involved violence and resulted in serious assaults, such as punching to faces and heads. Gardaí at Pearse Street conducted a major investigation. They gathered details from victims of their attackers and took images from CCTV cameras in the central Dublin area.

The co-ordinated operation involved gardaí from a range of stations across the north and south inner city as well as from Crumlin and Terenure in south Dublin.

A total of 70 officers were drafted in to conduct the searches and carry out the interviews.

Gardaí are investigating if the teenagers all worked in one gang or a loose group.

Given most are juveniles, their cases will be referred to the Juvenile Liaison Programme.

However, sources said they will only be included in that programme if its director believes the crimes are suitable for inclusion and if the suspects admit to the crimes.

One source said that it was quite likely the youths are known to the system and may have clocked up multiple convictions already.

They may have exhausted the juvenile process, which is aimed at diverting minors from the criminal justice system. If that is so, they may be charged in the criminal courts.

Gardaí said further offences may emerge during questioning. Parents or guardians of juveniles must be present for the interviews.

The youths can be held for a total of 24 hours, excluding rest and sleep breaks. They are being held at eight garda stations around the city.