Armed gardaí have intercepted seven members of an armed gang in two cars in Co Laois and west Dublin after a couple and their three children were held up in their home this morning.
The robbery occurred at a family home in a secluded spot in Killenaule in Co Tipperary at around 3am.
The men threatened the couple in their home, where three daughters under the age of 8 years were present.
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The Irish Times understands the man was badly assaulted during the robbery and that one of the gang members hit him with the butt of a gun and broke his nose.
He and his wife were tied up during the raid which Garda sources described as a horrific experience.
The same sources said the man has a business close to his home and it appears he was targeted because the gang believed he had cash in his home.
As well as cash, jewellery and other items, the family’s car was also stolen by the gang.
The alarm was raised immediately after the seven men left the property in two vehicles.
A rapid response Garda operation was put into place in the region which involved a large number of Garda vehicles and the Garda helicopter.
In the first of two follow-up operations, armed gardaí forced a car to stop in the Portlaoise area and five men – all in their 20s - were arrested.
A dramatic Garda chase of a second vehicle, a 4X4 Kai, occurred as two men in that car sped towards Dublin down the M7 motorway for around an hour.
This chase began when the vehicle was seen driving suspiciously, though it appears it was parked up and hiding for a period immediately after the robbery in order to evade Garda activity in the area around the robbery.
The chase concluded in busy morning commuter traffic at Newlands Cross, west Dublin, when the vehicle was forced to a stop by ramming it and the two occupants of the vehicle were arrested by armed gardaí at around 9am.
A Garda car was seen with smoke coming from it during the operation, though Garda sources said it did not go on fire and the gardaí in the vehicle were uninjured.
It is believed the engine of the vehicle may have exploded or overheated as a result of the high-speed chase.
Cash believed to be that taken from the house in the early hours in Co Tipperary was found in the car stopped near Bewley’s Hotel at Newlands Cross and two shotguns have also been found.
The Irish Times understands some of the men arrested are known criminal figures who have been the target of the Garda’s Operation Fiacla.
They are from Coolock, north Dublin, and some are members of an extended Traveller family.
The men are being held in a number of Dublin garda stations and also in Newrbridge, Naas and Kildare though all seven at set to be taken for questioning to Tipperary garda station where the investigation is based.
They have all been detained under Section 30 of the Offences Against the State Act and can be detained for up to 72 hours without charge.
Operation Fiacla was established in the spring of last year to target residential burglaries and also more organised gangs travelling the country to rob shops, businesses and homes where they believe they will get access to cash or high value resalable goods such as cigarettes and alcohol.
The men arrested this morning are suspected of being part of a group that steals high-powered vehicles specifically to target home owners and businesses that they have profiled for targeting.
Investigating gardaí are appealing for anyone with information to contact the incident room at Thurles Garda station 0504-25100, the Garda confidential line 1800-666-111 or any Garda station.
