TWO MEMBERS of a notorious Limerick criminal gang were among five people in Garda custody last night following a series of raids at homes in the city.
Some 40 gardaí were involved in the massive search operation which involved simultaneous swoops at 15 addresses on the north and south sides of Limerick.
Searches were carried out at houses on Hyde Road, Carew Park and St Mary’s Park as part of the raids which began at 7am yesterday and continued until lunchtime.
A handgun was recovered following one of the early morning searches at a house on Hyde Road, while five people were arrested at a house in Carew Park in Southill.
Members of the armed regional response unit were also involved in the operation led by more than 30 gardaí and detectives from Limerick.
Two of those arrested are leading members of the McCarthy/Dundon criminal gang.
One of the men is aged 21 while the second, who is in his late teens, is one of the gang’s close associates.
A third man and two women all aged in their early 20s were also arrested at the same time yesterday.
One woman and two of the men were brought to Henry Street Garda station while the second woman and another man were being questioned at Roxboro Garda station last.
All five were being detained under section 30 of the Offences Against the State Act, which means they can be held for a maximum of three days.
Gardaí sent the handgun for ballistic and forensic testing in Dublin while the house on Hyde Road where it was located was sealed off for a number of hours yesterday while gardaí carried out a technical examination.
Searches continued until early afternoon and gardaí say the operation was part of the ongoing efforts to tackle organised crime in the city.
“This was a very significant operation and part of our ongoing investigations into organised crime and criminal activity,” a Garda spokesman said.
Meanwhile, gardaí in Limerick are investigating a shooting which took place at house on the south side of the city last weekend.
Three shots were fired at a house in Carew Park at about 3am last Sunday.
No one was injured in the incident, which is not connected to the wider Limerick feud but may be linked to a falling out between criminals.
Roxboro Road gardaí are investigating the incident, and can be contacted on 061-214340.