Two to appear in court accused of impersonating gardaí

Five arrests and a number of items seized as part of investigation

Two men have been charged as part of an investigation into a gang impersonating gardaí.

It follows a 10-month investigation focused in the East and Midlands of the country across counties including Cavan, Monaghan and Meath.

Gardaí have been investigating claims people were pretending to be gardaí and taking cash from people's homes.

Six searches were carried out across three counties, and around €3,000 in cash, three rolex watches and five vehicles were seized in the operation.

On Tuesday - five people were arrested. Three have since been released without charge.

Two men charged in connection with the investigation will appear before Kilkenny District Court today (Thursday).

The investigation is ongoing based out of an incident room at Kilkenny Garda Station, with the scope of their enquiry focusing on the gang’s alleged activities across 15 counties.

Only last month did gardaí in the Cavan-Monaghan Division issue a warning, and appeal for witnesses, after a motorist was stopped by a male claiming to be a member of An Garda Siochana.

The incident occurred at Clonseady, Magheracloone, at approximately 7:45am on March 4.

The unsuspecting motorist reported subsequently being stopped by the male driving, who was said to be driving a navy-coloured Toyota Corolla Estate with a 10-LH registration.

The individual allegedly identified themselves as a member of An Garda Síochána but could not provide official identification.

Last year a person posing as a member of the force attended a house in the Ryefield area of Virginia where they attempted to dupe the property owner into accepting a makeshift Garda I.D.

The attempted theft/ fraud involved members of the gang calling to rural homes, impersonating a member of An Garda Síochána, and claiming they were investigating burglaries where sums of cash were stolen and that they were attempting to identify the owners. They then requested to compare the cash in their possession against cash held by the home owner.

The same attempted scam was linked to similar incidents in the neighbouring Meath division, in Carnaross and also Kilmessan. Again a navy coloured saloon type car was spotted.

Other such incidents were reported in Meath and the Scotshouse area of Co Monaghan in November 2021, as well as Castleblayney and Nobber before that.

Gardaí says that Tuesday’s raids were conducted by detectives from the Eastern Region, supported by uniform colleagues and Regional Armed Support Units.

Crime Prevention Advice:

An Garda Síochána has previously issued crime prevention advice in relation to this type of bogus tradesmen callers.

Members of An Garda Síochána will not cold call to a house and request to check cash in this manner.

An Garda Síochána wish to remind the public that any Garda member calling to your door will have identification.

However, should you have any concerns about the person at the door, you should not answer the door even if they are purporting to be a Garda.

Genuine Gardaí will always provide official details to allow you to confirm their identity with your local Garda Station and will be patient while you choose to so.