Gardaí have short list of suspects for 'joyriders' that rammed Garda car

Minister for Justice Helen McEntee has asked the Garda Commissioner to examine how to tackle this kind of antisocial behaviour

Footage is circulating online of aGarda car being rammed during  the antisocial incident in Cherry Orchard, Dublin.

Gardaí have a short list of suspects for the drivers that rampaged through a residential area in stolen cars on Monday, during which they rammed a Garda vehicle.

Investigators believe the chaos in Cherry Orchard, west Dublin, was “retaliation” for Garda operations against a gang behind so-called joyriding in the area.

Outrage

The incident, recorded and circulated online, sparked outrage and condemnation, including from Justice Minister Helen McEntee, and Garda Commissioner Drew Harris.

Many local councillors have been highlighting the problem all year, and have demanded a Government-level response and appropriate Garda resourcing.

Gardaí previously arrested seven suspected members of a group behind the problem, and brought charges. The individuals were granted bail and subject to curfews.

Three of the seven have since been placed in custody after gardaí caught them breaking bail conditions.

“A few of them regrouped and Monday was retaliation,” said one Garda source.

Gardaí are now trying to identify camera footage that might identify the drivers.

Garda associations were particularly concerned for the welfare of two members — young female officers — who were in a sole response car rammed.

Lack of resource

The president of the Garda Representative Association Brendan O’Connor said the frontline has been so depleted there were only “skeleton response crews”.

"A lot of the time now we see two inexperienced young gardaí, on their own with no backup available sent to establish the facts, and when they go what they are confronted with is extreme danger and attacks."

Commissioner Harris described the ramming of a Garda car as "disgraceful" and "very concerning".

Mr Harris said the public order unit will be back out in the area in response.

In a statement, Justice Minister Helen McEntee said:  "What we saw was a blatant disregard for the law, for An Garda Síochána — and most importantly for decent people in the local community in Cherry Orchard.

"We will always support communities affected by anti-social behaviour and criminality — honest, hard-working people who are appalled by this type of law breaking.

"We will also always put supports in place to ensure that there are services and facilities for young people in all our communities.

"But, I have to be clear. Anyone who engages in anti-social behaviour can be punished — and we will not allow anti-social behaviour [to] leave communities in fear."

Ms McEntee said she had asked the Garda Commissioner "specifically to look at what more we can do to tackle and deal with this type of anti-social behaviour."