A man is due to appear in court later today charged with a number of offences alleged to have occurred in several counties after he attempted to evade a Garda checkpoint in Co Clare last night.
Members of the Clare divisional roads policing unit had been deployed as part of ‘Operation Surround’. The local operation was part of An Garda Síochána’s nationwide Road Safety Month of Action targeting road traffic offences.
Shortly after 8.00pm, while Gardaí were checking vehicles in the Smithstown area of Shannon, a car was seen turning back from the checkpoint.
A second Garda unit, located nearby for such eventualities, quickly intercepted the Saab. The driver was arrested and taken to Shannon Garda station for questioning. The other occupants of the car were not detained.
During the course of follow-up investigations, Gardaí established that the vehicle was suspected of being involved in a number of incidents across several counties.
The man has since been charged with alleged offences including theft, understood to have occurred in Dublin, Waterford, Tipperary and Clare.
The car was also seized by Gardaí while investigations continue. It’s understood that further charges under the road traffic act will be preferred against the driver at a later stage.
The man is due to appear before a special sitting of the district court in Nenagh, Co Tipperary later today.
Gardaí have confirmed: “The car, which was previously known to Gardaí in connection with a number of theft incidents, displayed no tax or insurance and was seized by Gardaí. The driver of the vehicle, a male aged in his 20s, was arrested under Section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act, 1984 and brought to Shannon Garda Station for questioning.
During the course of his detention, the man admitted to nine incidents of theft at filling stations between 8th December 2019 and 2nd February 2020, during which he drove away from the premises without paying for fuel. The incidents occurred in various locations (four in Limerick, one in Swords, one in Clonmel, two in Shannon and one in Waterford).”