‘Slab’ Murphy left home minutes before raid - reports

Reports this morning have suggested that the alleged former IRA chief of staff Thomas "Slab" Murphy left his home on the Louth-Armagh border just minutes before gardaí and the PSNI searched the area on Thursday.

Murphy's farm was one of 15 properties searched in a massive cross border operation into organised crime.

According to newspaper reports, a search of his home in Ballybinaby confirmed that he had slipped out just minutes before security forces arrived - possibly because of a tip off.

Three people who were arrested following the operation were released without charge on Thursday night, and a file on the matter is being sent to the DPP.