Five held following series of Dublin raids

Five men have been arrested in a Garda blitz on drug trafficking, gun crime and money laundering.

More than 20 homes and business premises were searched in dawn raids across Dublin as part of a crackdown on a major organised crime outfit in the capital.

The operation was carried out by officers from the National Drugs Unit supported by local drugs units, the Criminal Assets Bureau and other Garda units.

The arrested men are aged from their mid 20s to mid 30s.

It is at least the second time the criminal associates have been targeted by the drugs squad in the last few months.

Sources also revealed that the raid follows a pipe bomb attack last November on the parental home of an officer who investigates organised crime.

The device exploded at the front door of the Dublin home while the man’s mother and father were inside.

No-one was injured in the attack but the explosion, and nails packed into the bomb, damaged the PVC front door.

It is understood raids were carried out across the city but the organised crime gang was originally centred in the Clondalkin area.