Gardaí in Dublin have arrested 13 people as part of an ongoing operation into organised crime in the city centre.
Detectives searched more than 19 premises as part of 'Operation Hawkeye 2' which has been running for almost two months and has been directed primarily against so-called "distraction thefts".
Gardaí from Store Street station supported by officers from the Garda National Immigration Bureau (GNIB) and accompanied by interpreters, conducted searches of houses in the North Circular Road and Marlborough Road areas.
Six men and two women aged between 16 and 30 years old, were held at Store Street and Mountjoy Garda stations under the provisions of Section 4 of The Criminal Justice Act following the searches. All of those arrested are of Romanian origin.
Gardaí said a further five people, three males and two females all in their 20s, were arrested lthis afternoon. A Garda spokesman said 8 people, including one juvenile, have already appeared in court today.
A small amount of property and drugs were seized during the searches. Investigations are continuing.
Distraction thefts usually occur at ATMs. The most common form of scam is when a person is distracted just as they enter their PIN number and another person takes money from that machine.