Gardaí in North Cork have urged homeowners to be vigilant and to secure their cars as they mounted a major search operation for a travelling criminal gang who were disturbed as they broke into a house in the area early on Friday morning.
Gardaí in Fermoy were alerted when a homeowner discovered three men breaking into his house in Glanworth near Fermoy at around 9.30am. He was knocked to the ground by the gang as they fled to a waiting gold coloured Volvo driven by a fourth man.
The homeowner, who is in his late 30s was uninjured and immediately alerted and Gardaí from Fermoy began a search for the gold coloured Volvo while they also alerted colleagues in Mallow and other surrounding districts to be on the lookout for the gang
Gardaí from Mallow came upon the gold colour Volvo near Quartertown on the south western outskirts of Mallow and the gang abandoned the car and fled on foot into fields near Dromahane as gardai mounted a major search operation.
Hiding
Gardaí received a tip off that the gang were hiding in a field where silage was being cut and they began to close in but three of the gang managed to elude gardaí and head off on foot in a south westerly direction towards high ground around Bweeng.
However gardaí managed to catch one of the gang, a 17-year-old youth from Tallaght hiding in a drain and he was brought for questioning to Fermoy Garda Station where he is detained under Section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act which allows gardaí detain suspects for up to 24 hours.
Gardaí also removed the gold coloured Volvo to a secure location and garda technical experts are carrying out a forensic examination for fingerprints and DNA evidence to help identify the other gang members while officers are also investigating whether the car may have been stolen.
Officers believe the gang travelled from Tallaght down the N8 late on Thursday night with a view to carrying out a spate of burglaries in North Cork only for their plans to be foiled when they were disturbed by the homeowner in Glanworth.
A Garda spokesman tonight urged homeowners in North Cork, and particularly in the Bweeng and Glantane areas, to check to make sure their property including their cars are secure as they believe the gang may try and steal a car to try and elude gardaí and get back to Tallaght.
Gardaí are also monitoring a number of known criminals in the greater Cork area with whom it’s suspected that the Tallaght gang have links and to whom they may turn for assistance in an effort to get them out of Cork and back to their west Dublin base.
Post Office raid
Meanwhile in an unrelated matter, Gardaí in Cork city are continuing to question two men in their 30s arrested on Thursday for questioning in connection with an armed robbery at Little Island Post Office in East Cork early on Thursday morning.
Two masked raiders, one armed with a handgun and the other armed with an iron bar burst into the Post Office in Trafford Park in Little island and threatened staff before making off with a small sum of cash in a black Ford Mondeo.
Gardaí began a search operation and arrested one man in the Glanmire area and arrested a second in the Knocknaheeny area on Thursday afternoon and brought both to Mayfield Garda Station where they are detained under Section 30 of the Offences Against the State Act.
