MINISTER FOR European Affairs Dick Roche has said that he was used as "a human shield" during an armed robbery at a leisure complex in Co Wicklow yesterday.
Mr Roche, who lives in Bray, close to the Marriott Druids Glen Hotel and Country Club, said that he was returning to his car with his driver following his morning swim and that the incident took him completely by surprise.
"I had just dropped into the lobby to collect the paper and a cup of tea before going to work. I was getting some papers ready so I could dictate letters on my way in," he said.
Mr Roche said that he had left the building and was about to enter his car when he first encountered the masked men.
"I stepped back. I bumped into somebody and said 'excuse me'. I realised that the fellow was wearing a balaclava.
"I could not understand why they would stop me and my driver as we were getting into the car. It was a relief when it turned out they were looking for money."
Mr Roche said the raiders pushed a gun into his back and directed him back towards the hotel lobby where the armed robbery commenced. "The man with the gun was using me as a shield to go into the hotel."
He said he was not scared about his own safety during the "not pleasant" incident, but that he was concerned about the welfare of the hotel's staff.
"It's a tough thing for a young woman to have a gun held literally seven or eight inches in front of her face on a Monday morning. It's not a pleasant way to start work," he said.
He said the hotel staff behaved "admirably" throughout the "aggressive" ordeal and he commended local gardaí for their speedy response to the 999 call.
Mr Roche described the incident as an "intriguing experience", said he did not believe the raiders had recognised him and that he "hoped they were not constituents".