Man rescued by gardaí from armed kidnapping in car on M50 is an ex-boxer from Belfast
The businessman was discovered with the four kidnappers when the vehicle was stopped by gardaí at Junction 4, near Ballymun, following an alert from the Police Service of Northern Ireland. File picture: Collins
A former boxer and businessman was bundled into a car by an armed abduction gang and driven 160km to Dublin before the kidnapping was dramatically foiled by gardaí on the M50.
The Belfast man, aged in his mid-30s, was kidnapped by four members of a well-known crime gang at gunpoint in the North in an incident linked to organised crime on both sides of the border.
The businessman was discovered with the four kidnappers when the vehicle was stopped by gardaí at Junction 4, near Ballymun, following an alert from the Police Service of Northern Ireland. The four men were arrested at the scene under the Non-Fatal Offences Against the Person Act, 1997.
The kidnapped man is known to police in the North and is currently under investigation for offences linked to organised criminality and the drugs trade.
The four suspects remained in garda custody where they continue to be questioned about the false imprisonment and firearms offences.
Three of the men have addresses in Galway while the fourth has an address in west Dublin. They are all aged in their 20s.
A firearm, which is being forensically examined, was recovered during the interception by gardaí. The men are being held under Section 50 of the Criminal Justice Act 2007 at Garda stations in the Dublin region.
The businessman was not injured in the incident and it is unclear what the intentions were of the crime gang.
In a statement, gardaí said the car was intercepted shortly before 10pm on Thursday by armed Garda units.
“An Garda Síochána continue to liaise closely with the Police Service of Northern Ireland. Investigations are ongoing."
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