Three gardai hurt as patrol cars rammed

Three gardaí have been taken to hospital following a series of ramming incidents while trying to prevent a robbery in Co Roscommon.

The officers in three garda vehicles were rammed by a four-wheel drive jeep which had carried out a robbery on a convenience store in Ballaghadereen at 4.30 this morning.

The patrol cars were repeatedly rammed as the jeep tried to evade a road block. The injured gardaí have been taken to Roscommon Hospital. Their injuries are described as not life threatening.

Two men in their twenties, reportedly from the Tallaght area of Dublin, have been arrested. One of the men has been taken to hospital with head injuries.

The other man is being questioned under Section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act in Castlerea Garda Station. All the stolen items, mostly cigarettes, were recovered.

A motorist whose car was in collision with the jeep was also taken to hospital. His condition is not known.