THE Garda is expected to seek the extradition of the prison escaper Thomas "Bomber" Clarke, who was arrested in Holland early yesterday. Clarke, from Ballyfermot, Dublin, escaped from a prison van in April and Garda suspicions that he had gone to Britain or the Continent appear to have been confirmed.
Gardai were travelling to Amsterdam to officially identify Clarke yesterday and to prepare arrangements for his extradition.
It is understood Clarke was arrested by Dutch police when officers stopped an attempted robbery yesterday morning in Amsterdam. It is understood Clarke originally gave a false identity.
Clarke was serving a five year sentence in Portlaoise Prison and was facing further charges when he escaped.
He was in transit from the prison to a court appearance in Dublin when the van he was in was rammed by a stolen car just outside Dublin. A group of armed men held up four prison officers and a garda, all of whom were unarmed.
The stolen car was later found abandoned with bloodstains on the rear seat, believed to have been from an arm wound Clarke suffered as he broke out of the prison van.
The escape was a major embarrassment to the Garda and senior officers said there was considerable relief at the recapture. Clarke, a persistent offender with drug problems, had previously escaped from custody in Britain.