A car involved in a crash on the M50 after it was driven down the wrong side of the motorway on Sunday had been stolen in Dublin before the incident, it is understood.
The car, which had eight teenagers inside when it collided with another vehicle near Junction 12 at Firhouse in the early hours of Sunday morning, had been stolen from the Rathmines area.
It had been spotted in the Monkstown area on Sunday morning, though it failed to stop for gardaí before it went on to the M50, according to a senior Garda source.
A total of nine people, including the eight teenage boys, were hospitalised following the collision.
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One of teenagers was in a critical condition, while the driver of a second car, a man aged in his 20s, was hospitalised for serious injuries.
The State’s policing watchdog has launched an independent investigation into the incident.
In a statement on Monday, Fiosrú, which investigates incidents involving contact with gardaí where a member of the public has died or been seriously injured, confirmed it received a referral regarding the incident.
It said a team of investigators attended the scene and an independent investigation is ongoing.
“A referral does not necessarily mean a garda or gardaí have been accused of wrongdoing.
“Instead, it means that Fiosrú should independently investigate the incident to ascertain whether or not the act or omission of a garda or gardaí may have resulted in the death of, or serious harm to, a person,” it said.
The section of the M50 where the collision occurred, from Junction 12 to Junction 11 southbound, was closed for a number of hours on Sunday while a forensic collision examination was carried out.
Following the collision, gardaí appealed for witnesses to the incident to come forward, including those who were travelling in either direction between both junctions at the time.
