CHILDREN in Dundalk found a pump action shotgun and ammunition at the weekend. Gardai believe they belong to a subversive organisation and say the children were lucky there was no accident with the gun.
The youngsters, aged 10 to 12 years, were playing on Sunday evening when they found a green hold-all in a ditch at the side of the road. They saw the gun and told their parents. Gardai discovered the bag also contained cartridges, cartridge belts, an imitation revolver and balaclavas.
"It was totally reckless ... a lethal combination to leave a sawn-off shotgun and cartridges where kids could find them," said one senior garda. The gun is in excellent condition and Garda technical experts are examining it. Gardai believe the children's find may have foiled an attempted robbery.
"It has all the hallmarks of a bag of equipment destined for a robbery involving a subversive group of some description," said the garda. They are also examining the possibility that the bag may have been disposed of temporarily if the occupants feared a Garda patrol or checkpoint.