Roche caught up in armed raid at Wicklow hotel

Six people, including a Government minister and his official driver were today held hostage at gunpoint during a robbery at a hotel and golf resort, the Gardaí confirmed.

Minister for European Affairs Dick Roche was among the group held by three gunmen at the Marriott Hotel at the Druids Glen complex in Co Wicklow.

No shots were fired and nobody was injured during the course of the incident, which happened at around 9.30am.

Mr Roche was approached by the gunman in the main lobby of the Marriott Hotel and the raiders may not have recognised him, his spokesman said.

Father-of-four Mr Roche then had a gun held to his back at the Co Wicklow hotel complex.

The 61-year-old was with his official driver at the time and both were shaken by the incident.

"Mr Roche was returning from a daily swim at the hotel's pool when he was approached from behind and had a gun shoved into his back," said a Garda spokesman.

"He was forced into a room with his driver and other staff members.

"Obviously he is shaken by the incident but is currently helping gardaí with their inquiries."

The raiders escaped with an undisclosed sum of money in a dark-coloured car, gardaí said.

One of the men was armed with a sawn-off shotgun.

"They made their getaway in a darkly coloured car - possibly a Volvo," the spokesman said.

Several thousand euro is understood to have been taken in the robbery.

Mr Roche had been leaving for an engagement in the European Commission offices in Dublin city centre to debate Ireland's future in Europe following last week's summit of EU leaders in Brussels.

After last year's general election, Mr Roche was dropped from the Cabinet and appointed Minister for European Affairs with responsibility of promoting the Lisbon Treaty.

The Druids Glen Golf Resort is located just 30 minutes south of Dublin.

Known as the Augusta of Europe, the resort is home to one of Ireland's leading golf clubs and hosted the Irish Open in the late 1990s.