Two teenage girls have been arrested by gardaí investigating thefts from and the coercion of a number of vulnerable adults in Dublin this week.
The arrests follow reports of adults being approached by two girls and taken to ATM machines to withdraw money.
Ruth Spurling, a parent of one of the victims, told RTÉ's Liveline this week how her 23-year-old son Joshua, who has Down syndrome, was approached by two girls in a shop who attempted to withdraw cash with his card from an ATM machine in the shop.
While the manager of the shop intervened and prevented them, the girls waited for the man outside the premises and brought him to an ATM machine at the GPO where they withdrew €500 and made further attempts to get more money.
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Ms Spurling said they held the man for around 30 minutes and made further demands, including that he buy them food.
About €700 was also taken from the account of another vulnerable adult. Gardaí investigating the incidents said they arrested two female juveniles on Thursday.
“Gardaí had received report of a number of incidents that occurred on the 20th and 21st of this week involving people being taken to cash points and retailers, and coerced into making substantial purchases and withdrawing sums of cash which were then stolen,” a Garda spokesman said.
Gardaí from the Serious Crime Unit at Pearse Street Garda station made the arrests in connection with the incidents. The two girls are detained at a Garda station in Dublin under Section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act, 1984.
Any members of the public who believe they may have been a victim of a similar incident in Dublin city centre in recent days are asked to make contact with Gardaí at Pearse Street Garda station on 01 666 9000.
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