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'This is real life. This is tough': Garda chief praises bravery of two detectives shot during Blanchardstown siege

Two gardaí were shot by a man who barricaded himself inside his house in the Whitechapel area of Dublin 15.

BLANCH SHOOTING 00001 Leah Farrell / RollingNews.ie Leah Farrell / RollingNews.ie / RollingNews.ie

BLANCHARDSTOWN CHIEF SUPERINTENDENT Finbarr Murphy has spoken of the bravery shown by gardaí as they dealt with an hours-long siege incident in west Dublin last night. 

Speaking outside Blanchardstown Garda Station in the early hours of this morning, Murphy told the attending press that “tonight is a reminder of the danger gardaí put themselves at” to protect the communities they serve. 

Two gardaí were shot by a man who barricaded himself inside his house in the Whitechapel area of Dublin 15 shortly after 7pm. 

Gardaí said the officers were attending to reports of gunshots in the area when they themselves were fired upon. 

Plain-clothes and uniformed gardaí supported by Armed Support Units responded to the scene. A Garda helicopter also circled the area providing support from above.

A negotiator from the Special Tactics and Operations Command is also understood to have attended the scene. 

An armed plain-clothes unit at the scene came under fire. Gardaí took cover behind a patrol car and an exchange of bullets occurred between the man and the armed detectives.

The patrol car was struck a number of times by bullets.

One garda suffered gunshot injuries to his hand and foot. Another garda suffered injuries to his foot. Both are expected to make full recoveries, senior gardaí said this morning. 

IMG_5555 Superintendent Peter Burke (l) and Chief Superintendent Finbarr Murphy (r) at Blanchardstown Garda Station. Garreth MacNamee Garreth MacNamee

The siege came to an end at around 10pm when the man threw two weapons, a handgun and a submachine gun, out his window.

He then exited the house where he was detained. Both firearms and ammunition have been recovered. The man is being held at Blanchardstown Garda Station.

It’s understood that the man involved in the siege is a known gangland criminal, who has been involved in a years-long feud with another local drug dealer.

Gardaí appealed for a media blackout in order to protect lives as the incident was ongoing last evening. This was observed by most established news outlets, including The Journal

Garda Commissioner Drew Harris commended all the officers involved in the incident for the “successful” outcome of the siege. He paid particular tribute to the “bravery” of the two detectives who were first on scene.

“This was another in a long line of examples of Gardaí putting themselves on the line to keep people safe. I want to wish them a speedy recovery,” Commissioner Harris said.

Speaking this morning, Chief Superintendent Murphy said: “I want to thank them, on behalf of the organisation, for the work they do and the danger they put themselves to make us safe. I say well done tonight, everyone who responded tonight, you did a brilliant job.

“These people have families they have gone to work today and someone had to make a phone call today to tell them what happened.

“It’s real life. It’s tough. It’s very, very important that the community appreciate the work these guards are doing and the level of risk they put themselves at to protect society.”

Taoiseach Micheál Martin also thanked the gardaí for their efforts.

“I was shocked and deeply concerned to learn that two Gardaí were injured in the course of their duties this evening,” he said last night. 

“I wish both Gardaí a swift and full recovery, and I thank them for their service on behalf of the public.

“This incident in Dublin shows yet again the danger An Garda Síochána often face in their efforts to protect and serve the people. We should always be very grateful for all the work they do on a daily basis on our behalf.”

Any member of the public who has information about the incident or footage from the scene is being asked to contact Blanchardstown Garda Station.

Meanwhile, the president of the Garda Representative Association (GRA), Frank Thornton, wished the two injured gardai “a speedy recovery and I also want to thank every member of the garda organisation who contributed to the operation which saw the incident brought to a conclusion without further injury”.

“It brings into focus the very real and ever-present danger that every garda is exposed to when performing their duty. All members of An Garda Síochána put themselves in harm’s way every day that they go to work in order to protect communities and ensure citizens are kept safe.

“While any incident that results in two members being injured cannot be considered to have been resolved successfully, it is a credit to the collective policing response and the actions of individual members that the incident was brought to a conclusion without further injury or loss of life,” he added.

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    Mute Daniel Morrissey
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    Apr 17th 2021, 12:20 AM

    Roll on the 26th change…. yawn…

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    Mute Anna Carr
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    Apr 17th 2021, 12:56 AM

    @Daniel Morrissey: lol. I know how you feel. How many bloomin people over 65 are in the country. They seem to go on forever hahaha

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    Mute Peter McGlynn
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    Apr 17th 2021, 1:12 AM

    @Anna Carr: I don’t know how many. How many people voted Fianna Fáil? In or around that amount.

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    Mute Ger
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    Apr 17th 2021, 3:06 AM

    @Anna Carr: it literally tells you in the article

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    Mute Paul Gorry
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    Apr 17th 2021, 3:16 AM

    @Ger: ah lighten up ger her comment was tongue in cheek jayus what are you not seeing there?

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    Mute Dave O'Keeffe
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    Apr 17th 2021, 5:13 AM

    @Daniel Morrissey: well yeah, can’t make them deliver it faster or make it ourselves so that’s what we have to do.

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    Mute Anto Curran
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    Apr 17th 2021, 8:00 AM

    @Peter McGlynn: obsessed with FF. Unless you’re playing an online game where you can try to fit FF into every comments section?

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    Mute Barbara Stewart
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    Apr 17th 2021, 11:55 AM

    @Anna Carr: Sorry for being 69 and delaying your vaccination….I could have said the same about all over 70s but I have a bit more respect!!!

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    Mute Tony Humphreys
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    Apr 17th 2021, 1:54 AM

    You lost me at the word ‘plan’. I always thought they there was only one plan – lockdown. Why do something when you can get away with nothing.

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    Mute Dave O'Keeffe
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    Apr 17th 2021, 5:14 AM

    @Tony Humphreys: well you thought wrong and then refused to think about it anymore

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    Mute Keith Richardson
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    Apr 17th 2021, 1:54 PM

    @Dave O’Keeffe: well there is no published plan on reopening. I’m sure there’s one on a desk somewhere. If people were treated like adults and told this then there would be increased confidence.

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    Mute Dave O'Keeffe
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    Apr 18th 2021, 5:32 AM

    @Keith Richardson: no, if there was a widely publicised plan with an unpredictable pandemic and unreliable delivery schedules any changes would undermine the confidence you claim it would bring.

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    Mute Tarraing Mo Liathróidí
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    Apr 17th 2021, 8:02 AM

    The fact we still likely won’t restart tourism and hospitality till June or July is just mind boggling, especially given the fact MM despite some who said it was lies when I pointed out that leaky Leo said the same thing, that he can’t say we won’t go into another lockdown after this one. And given the fact the hse management seem to have done nothing except allow the waiting list balloon and get themselves a pay rise, any extra surge from even a few covid cases over the winter months makes this likely since they now have a great excuse to cover up they barely cope any winter before covid hit. So this means a lot of small businesses and retail included as well may only have a small window to open and make some much needed money, meanwhile north will be full steam ahead open end of May.

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    Mute Siobhan Rosemary
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    Apr 17th 2021, 8:35 AM

    So the AstraZeneca isnt safe to use on under 60s but is safe for under 60s who received 1st dose?? Think il pass on the second thanks. Back of the que I go lol

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    Mute Dave O'Keeffe
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    Apr 18th 2021, 5:34 AM

    @Siobhan Rosemary: that silly. 1 in a million died of a blood clot that nobody knew to be looking for. That’s different now. 12 in a million died of covid here and doctors were definitely looking for it.

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    Mute K Flan
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    Apr 17th 2021, 11:26 AM

    2 more weeks to flatten the curve

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    Mute Dave O'Keeffe
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    Apr 18th 2021, 5:35 AM

    @K Flan: the curve is flattened. Sadly the base rate is still over 300 cases per day.

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    Mute Sean Callan
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    Apr 17th 2021, 7:26 AM

    Boring boring boring all this lot has to offer

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