Four people, including three men and a woman, remain in custody today, after gardaí foiled a suspected retaliation attack for a gangland-style shooting in Limerick earlier this week.
A member of the Garda Emergency Response Unit was hospitalised during the course of the incident. The garda received medical treatment at the Mid-Western Regional Hospital in Limerick yesterday where his injuries were described as not life threatening.
Members of the specialist armed intervention unit backed up by the Regional Support Unit were involved in a high-speed chase during which a car was rammed off the road at Drombanna, Ballyneety, Co Limerick, shortly after 1pm.
A 9mm handgun and a quantity of ammunition were found in the car in which three men and one woman were travelling.
All four who are in their mid-20s were arrested. Two of the men are members of the McCarthy-Dundon criminal gang. A Garda spokesman said yesterday’s operation was part of an ongoing investigation into organised crime in Limerick.
The intelligence-led operation resulted from weeks of surveillance in the area.
The four suspects had travelled from the city to the area to collect a gun destined for use in a revenge attack following Monday night’s shooting in which Daniel Phillips was critically injured. The 20-year-old suffered gunshot wounds to his head and stomach when a gunman on a bicycle fired into the car he was driving.
The shooting occurred at 9.30pm on Monday near St John’s Square in the city.
A man arrested within an hour of the shooting remained in Garda custody last night.
The 27-year-old, a chief suspect in the shooting, was brought before a special sitting of Limerick District Court yesterday evening where gardaí were granted a further 72 hours to question him. He has escaped two assassination attempts so far this year.
A 26-year-old woman, who was detained on withholding information regarding the shooting, also appeared in front of the same court. Gardaí were granted a further 24 hours to question her.
It is feared that members of the McCarthy-Dundon gang were plotting a retaliation attack for Monday night’s shooting when they were intercepted by gardaí yesterday. A member of the Emergency Response Unit suffered a serious facial injury after the car carrying the four suspects was rammed off the road.
Two of the people in the car suffered superficial injuries but did not require hospital treatment, according to a Garda spokesman.
The Garda Síochána Ombudsman Commission has started an investigation into yesterday’s incident.
In a statement, the commission said the matter was referred by the Garda Commissioner under section 102 of the Garda Síochána Act 2005.
“This section states that the Garda Commissioner shall refer to GSOC any matter that appears to the Garda Commissioner to indicate that the conduct of a member of the Garda Síochána may have resulted in the death of or serious harm to a person,” read the statement.