Third man arrested in attempted ATM robbery

A third man has been arrested following an attempted ATM robbery in Virginia this morning.

The man was arrested at around lunchtime today, after armed gardaí entered a premises and cornered the alleged suspect, The Anglo-Celt understands.

He is currently being detained at Bailieboro Garda Station under the provisions of Section 50 – Criminal Justice Act 2007.

The two men arrested earlier are also being detained by gardai- at Carrickmacross and Kells Garda Stations respectively. They are also being detained under the provisions of Section 50 - Criminal Justice Act 2007

Their arrests came after uniform and plain clothes gardaí attached to Cavan/Monaghan Garda Divisions, and supported by Garda National Units, intervened in an attempted ATM robbery in Virginia in the early hours of this morning Wednesday, August 14.

The garda operation continued into the afternoon, with a garda helicopter and canine units employed, as searches were conducted for the third person who was believed to have fled when gardaí swooped on the scene earlier this morning.

In a follow-up operation attached to the earlier arrests, a substantial amount of cash was recovered following a raid on a site near the Cavan-Meath border. The quantity of the sum of cash recovered has yet to be confirmed.

The persons arrested are understood to live locally or have connections to this particular region.

The digger used in the attempted ATM theft was taken from the site where a new fire station is being built in the town on the Bailieborough Road. The ATM is built into the wall at the Riverfront Hotel on Virginia town's Main Street.

The arrests come after, The Celt understands, gardai mounted a significant presence in the region over the past weekend, including conducting checkpoints in the Kingscourt, Bailieborough and Mullagh areas.

One eye witness to the matters that unfolded told this newspaper this morning that they awoke to a garda car in collision with what is believed to have been the getaway vehicle being used.

“I heard this unmerciful bang. I went to the window and the whole street was full of people.”

A garda spokesperson confirmed that further searches are “continuing” this afternoon.

The main road through Virginia had been closed for a period, with diversions in place early this morning which did cause some disruption for rush hour traffic heading on the N/M3, however the route has since been reopened.

The incident comes following more than 20 ATM thefts or attempted thefts both north and south since the start of the 2019.

As a result, tracking monitors had been fitted to some ATMS.

The most recent ATM thefts locally occurred over the Bank Holiday Weekend in April when two ATM machines- from AIB and from Bank of Ireland- were stolen during a brazen heist in Kells, Co Meath.

Both were later discovered abandoned and burned-out in a wooded area at Barley Hill, about 5km east of Kingscourt on the Meath-Monaghan border. A burnt-out SUV and trailer were also found nearby.

The digger and tractor used were stolen earlier that night in separate counties.

The digger was taken from a field in Meath, while the JCB, tractor and trailer used to transport the excavator to the scene were stolen in the Louth area. When gatdai attempted to attend the scene, the culprits behind the raids deloyed a stinger device before having good their escape.

Gardai in Cavan-Monaghan had at the time mounted an operation, placing mobile patrols between the two counties on “high alert” in towns where easily accessible ATMs are located.

Speaking to this newspaper at the time, Chief Superintendent John O'Reilly acknowledged there is a “significant challenge” in trying to pin-point what the next target is for criminals, but that the authorities were working closely with other agencies to coordinate a larger response.

Along with Kells, towns South of the border targetted include Kingscourt, Co Cavan in March; and Ballybay (December 2018) and Castleblayney (April 2019), Co Monaghan.

There were no recorded ATM thefts in the five years between 2012 and 2017, however there were attempted robberies of the same type reported in Co. Wicklow in May 2011, and in Co. Carlow in 2010.

Several closely-knit gangs are believed involved in the spate of ATM thefts. All are understood to be involved in cross-border criminality, with at least one of the gangs said to have links to those behind the murder of Kilnaleck-native, Detective Garda Adrian Donohoe.

Gardaí are to host a press briefing this evening at Bailieboro Garda Station.

The Celt will bring you an update later this evening.