Gardaí probe possible IRA link Cork robbery bid

Gardaí were tonight investigating a suspected Provisional IRA link to a hostage-taking and attempted robbery in Cork.

Gary O'Donovan, who runs a pub and a chain of off-licences in Cork, was imprisoned with his wife and family by two masked men in his house in Mount Oval Village, Rochestown, on the outskirts of the city.

The men, one in his 30s and the other in his 40s, were arrested, as they left the house in the early hours of this morning, and a third man was arrested in Dublin in the afternoon.

Garda sources said two of the men had links to the Provisional IRA. Two are understood to have addresses in Dundalk and the other man is from Belfast.

Gardaí were tonight investigating if the operation was carried out on their own behalf or on behalf of the IRA.

Two men broke into Mr O'Donovan's house in Mount Oval Village at around 9pm on Monday and held his wife, Katie, at gunpoint while they waited for him to return.

When he arrived home at 10pm, he was beaten and had a cloak placed over his head.

It is understood that the gang wanted to extort money from Mr O'Donovan.

However, the man guarding him upstairs fell asleep and he escaped to alert a neighbour - a local garda who lived on the estate.

Gardaí from stations across Cork city surrounded the house and brought in a trained negotiator in the event of a hostage situation developing.

They later arrested two men and recovered a handgun and a stun gun.

A Garda spokesman said the men were being held in Togher and Bridewell Garda stations under Section 30 of the Offences Against the State Act.

"They are being questioned about false imprisonment and aggravated burglary," he said.

Mr O'Donovan required treatment in Cork University Hospital for a head wound but his wife, who is six months pregnant, was unharmed. The couple's four children, who are between one and six years old, slept through the ordeal.

Employees at the Rochestown Inn in Cork city, which Mr O'Donovan owns, were distraught to hear of his ordeal but relieved that he and his family had escaped without serious injury.

"Obviously everyone is delighted he is safe and wishes him well in his recovery," said a spokesman.

Mr O'Donovan is the head of the O'Donovan Off-licence group, a Cork-based chain of 13 off-licences with a turnover of around €25m. As the holder of a diploma in wine appreciation, he has given lectures across Munster on wine tasting and wine history.

Last February, gardaí mounted a major operation to target alleged IRA money laundering in Cork.

Detectives discovered £2.3million in sterling notes (€3.4m) in a compost bin in the home of a money lender around 15 miles outside the city and £54,000 sterling (€80,000) in a washing powder box in another house in the suburbs.