Updated 5.21pm
GARDAÍ ARE QUESTIONING a man about the mugging of three schoolchildren in Limerick city this Monday morning, which may be connected to a mugging of a teenage girl on Sunday night.
Despite initial reports two girls and a boy were mugged as they made their way to school this morning, gardaí now say the victims were three boys.
The boys are said to be aged between 15 and 16.
They were walking along a short cut between Lee Estate and Athlunkard Boat Club around 8.30am when they were approached by a man.
According to gardaí, the man asked the boys for a mobile phone and then fled with the phone threatening them not to contact gardaí.
Gardaí sealed off the scene this morning and carried out a search of the area.
Arrest
A man in his 20s, from the Ballinacurra Weston part of the city, was arrested in connection with the incident, and is being detained at Mayorstone Garda station under Section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act.
None of the victims were injured and gardaí did not comment on local reports that the man may have had a weapon.
Former mayor of Limerick, Independent councillor John Gilligan – who lives in Lee Estate condemned the incident.
Cllr Gilligan said he has, ad nauseam, called for a CCTV camera to be installed at the walkway, which links the Island Field with Athlunkard Street, Corbally.
There are people in the area “who would prey on anyone, young and old or the vulnerable”, he said. “We can’t let this happen again,” he added.
Here we have schoolchildren mugged on their way to school, and the city council is spending €10m on doing up the walkway, and we don’t have any CCTV on it.
“The area is used by people as a shortcut, and for years I’ve begged the authorities for a camera to be placed there,” he said. ”If only to try to prevent this from happening again, we need that camera. I’m again calling for it to be erected there.”
Another mugging
A garda source said a young female was mugged on Sunday night in Grove Island, Corbally – which is located close to the scene of this morning’s mugging.
Her phone was stolen in similar circumstances, after a man asked to make a phone call on her device.
“We don’t know if both incidents are linked, but we have a man in custody and we will be questioning him about it,” the source said.
Clarification: Gardaí in Limerick have corrected earlier information given that two boys and a girl were mugged this morning. They have now said that a girl was mugged last night and three boys, aged 15 and 16, were mugged today.
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
have your say