Six third-level students who triggered a major Garda alert after filming what looked like a real-life abduction were not making a short film as part of their studies, their college has insisted.
Gardaí in Limerick launched a search for a missing youth after a number of people witnessed what they believed was an abduction in the Quinlan Street area of the city on Monday night.
However, less than 12 hours later it emerged that the "abduction" was in fact staged by a number of local third-level students who claimed they were making a short film for college.
A spokesman for Mary Immaculate College in Limerick - where the six are studying - denied claims that the students were making the film as part of a college project for a media studies course.
"The students involved in this are not media studies students at the college and they were not either representing the college or purporting to represent the college," said Mr Marcus Free, acting head of the department of media and communications.
One of the students involved in the so-called "prank" is studying arts and the five others are studying education, according to the spokesman.
A spokesman for Roxboro Garda station said the matter had been resolved and no issue would arise with the students in relation to wasting Garda time.