Shots fired in security van raid

An armed gang opened fire as they held up a cash-in-transit van today – the seventh such robbery this year.

Gardaí said two masked men carried out the gunpoint raid as security staff delivered cases of money to an Ulster Bank branch near Dublin Airport.

The raiders fled the scene on a motorbike, which gardaí said was driven by a third man.

Group 4 Securicor, which operates the van, insisted only a small amount of cash was stolen.

“A number of shots were fired during this incident, and one of our staff was assaulted and suffered some injuries,” she said.

“Our key concern in respect of this incident, as in any similar incident, is for the safety and wellbeing of our staff.”

The motorbike was found abandoned a short distance from the hold-up on the Swords Road.

The daylight raid happened in a small cul-de-sac between the Coachman’s Inn and the Fingal Golf Centre.

It is the seventh cash-in-transit robbery in Dublin this year.

Six of the thefts occurred in Dublin while another took place in Dundalk.

A range of improved security measures have been introduced by cash-in-transit companies to deter armed gangs including money cases protected by dye and locked down delivery vans.

There has been a sharp fall in the number of similar hold-ups since armed gangs carried out 61 robberies in 2004.

Since then there has been a steady decline with only 20 cases last year.