Gardaí are investigating a possible link between yesterday's armed robbery of a bank in Killester, Dublin, and a €250,000 raid on a post office in Rathmines, Dublin, in January.
At around 9am yesterday, staff arriving at the Killester branch of National Irish Bank were confronted by two men who were already inside waiting for them.
One had a firearm, and three staff members were locked in a toilet while the raiders made off with a substantial sum of cash and cheques, believed to be in excess of €100,000.
It is thought the men gained access through the rear of the building.
No shots were fired during the raid, and there were no injuries. The alarm was raised when a caller to the bank became suspicious and alerted gardaí.
A full investigation has been opened, and gardaí at Clontarf have appealed for witnesses. Last night members of the Garda Technical Bureau were conducting an examination of the scene.
The raid in Killester has several similarities with the Rathmines post office robbery in January, not least in the fact that the raiders were lying in wait when staff arrived at the start of the working day.
Gardaí have not ruled out a connection. "We are certainly looking at all similar crimes, including the Rathmines robbery, but we're not yet aware of any link," said a spokeswoman.
Meanwhile, gardaí arrested a man following an attempted raid at a post office in Rathfarnham yesterday afternoon.
The incident took place at 12.35pm when a man entered the premises armed with a knife. He threatened a customer and staff, but fled the premises empty-handed. No injuries were reported.
Gardaí arrested a 26-year-old man at nearby Butterfield Avenue. He was held at Rathfarnham Garda station.