Bank criticised for delay in reporting raid

The National Irish Bank should have immediately alerted gardaí to a kidnap and robbery in progress at one of its north Dublin branches, Minister for Justice Michael McDowell said today.

Executives at Killester NIB waited until a gang had released the family of an employee and had fled with cash before the alarm was raised in Tuesday morning’s heist.

The four raiders held the mother and two younger sisters of the 23-year-old staff member at gunpoint until he had delivered a substantial amount of money to them.

Gardaí were only alerted after the mother was released and she rushed to the nearest telephone – almost 12 hours later.

Mr McDowell today warned that copy-cat raids may result and lives could be put in danger if businesses didn’t immediately report robberies that were in progress.

“Everybody who is aware of an offence has a public duty to report it immediately to protect themselves and to prevent it happening in the future,” he said.

Speaking of the NIB raid, he added: “If any of these kind of events take place, the safety of their staff, the public and the integrity of their institution, requires them to co-operate immediately and without fail with the gardaí.

“Any other policy would only attract repeat offences and put innocent lives in danger.”

Mr McDowell said that gardaí and institutions that handle large sums of money have established channels through which to discuss security procedures.

The family’s ordeal began at around 9.45pm on Monday night when four men forcibly entered the house at Seacliff Avenue, Baldoyle, and imprisoned the man’s mother and two sisters, aged 16 and 18.

Two family members were kept imprisoned in the house until after 11am on Tuesday, while the other two were taken to open ground off the Balgriffin Road where they were held at gunpoint overnight.

The man was then driven to the NIB branch on Howth Road, Killester, and ordered to later deliver a substantial amount of cash to a waiting car at Stiles Avenue in Clontarf.

Detectives are still examining at least four crime scenes but have pieced together a description of one raider from interviews with the family.

He is in his 50s, was dressed in black, 5ft 4in or 5ft 5in tall, and was wearing a blonde false hairpiece and a face mask.

He was the gang member holding members of the family at gunpoint overnight off the Balgriffin Road. Members of the public in that area at the time are asked to come forward with information.

The crime was the country’s latest "tiger" kidnap – so-called because the raiders stalk their prey to study their movements before striking.