Two for court over Kerry raid

Two of the three men arrested yesterday in connection with the foiled theft of an ATM from a bank branch in Castleisland, Co …

Two of the three men arrested yesterday in connection with the foiled theft of an ATM from a bank branch in Castleisland, Co Kerry are due in court this afternoon.

Local gardaí were alerted about the raid at about 5am yesterday morning.

Arriving on the scene, they saw a number of men trying to remove the ATM from the wall of the Allied Irish Bank on Main Street using a digger.

Two men escaped in a van, trying to ram a Garda patrol car as they fled.

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They abandoned their van some 10km outside the town and ran onto bogland near a farm. They were captured by gardaí following a struggle.

The two men, who are in their 20s, were arrested and taken to Killarney Garda station where they are being questioned under Section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act.

In a follow-up operation, a third man (45) was arrested in Listowel. He was taken to Tralee Garda station and questioned before being released last night. A file has been sent to the Director of Public Prosecutions.

All three men are from Northern Ireland and are believed to be connected to a major criminal gang operating on both sides of the Border.

The Garda spokesman said extensive damage was caused to the bank. The digger caught fire outside the bank and the blaze had to be extinguished by the local fire brigade.