Gardaí have confirmed that one of the force's members has been suspended from duty as part of an investigation into an alleged sexual assault on a teenage boy.
The trainee garda, who is believed to be based in Dublin, is alleged to have arranged for the boy to have sex with a number of adults over 12 months.
Garda spokesman
According to media reports, up to ten men could be involved, including a teacher and a truck driver, although gardaí have refused to confirm this.
Two people - including the trainee garda - were arrested as part of the inquiry on Friday but have since been released.
The garda is believed to have been interviewed at Tallaght Garda Station, rather than the station where he is based, and detectives questioned him about his relationship with the boy.
A spokesman for the Garda said that an investigation had begun following a complaint from the boy's mother, who reportedly found inappropriate text messages on her son's mobile phone.
The boy is believed to have made a detailed statement to detectives over the past week in which he outlined a number of incidents of abuse.
"We are investigating an allegation of sexual assault on a 14-year-old boy and this investigation concerns a number of people including a serving member of the Garda Siochána who has been suspended from duty," the spokesman told ireland.com.
Taoiseach Bertie Ahern confirmed this evening the investigation was at a critical stage, describing the reports as "disturbing and worrying".
Fine Gael leader Enda Kenny called on mobile phone companies to draw up controls on the transmission of indecent messages or pictures via mobile phones. "This is most distressing," he said.
Chief executive of the ISPCC Paul Gilligan said that the news was very worrying for parents.
"It's very distressing to hear about paedophile rings, and this one is particularly so given the occupation of the people who appear to be involved in it.
"Children see a garda walking down the road, and they see them as a person who's in a position of trust, so it's very sad and distressing when you hear about someone exploiting that trust, and it becomes even more worrying when there's possibly a teacher involved as well."
However, Mr Gilligan said that he was pleased with the gardaí's response to the allegatations.
"The gardaí seem to have acted very appropriately and efficiently. Obviously they're eager to ensure that if there is a member of the Garda Síochána who's a risk to children . . . they'll deal with it quickly," said Mr Gilligan.
Fine Gael education spokesperson Olwyn Enright TD said: "I was horrified to learn that a probationer garda and a teacher may be involved in this paedophile ring. It is particularly distressing to learn that two of the individuals involved in this case were in positions of trust and one individual may have worked in close proximity to the child.
"This type of grooming and coercing of a child further highlights the urgency to ensure that the procedures for vetting people, who work with children, are able to include 'soft information' on suspect behaviour as well as convictions," she said.
