Man and woman arrested in Blarney under Operation Thor

A man and woman in their 30s have been arrested and a firearm seized following a checkpoint in Blarney, Co Cork as part of Operation Thor.

Gardaí seized a shot gun, ammunition and made the arrests at about 7.30pm on Friday evening after units from Gurranabraher and Anglesea Street stations stopped a car during a checkpoint at Clogheenmilcon in Blarney, Co Cork.

The firearm and ammunition - pending a ballistic examination - were recovered during a search of the car.

The man and woman were arrested at the scene and are being detained under Section 30 of the Offences against the State Act, 1939 at Gurranabraher and Mayfield Garda Stations. Investigations into the seizure are ongoing.

Operation Thor was launched by an Garda Síochána in late 2015 with a particular focus on six serious criminal gangs and 200 repeat offenders.

The operation involves the use of a new fleet of high-powered BMW and Audi SUVs, high-visibility checkpoints, and increased patrols on motorways to deny criminals the use of the road network.

As well as the new high-powered vehicles, there will also be increased use of technology for covert surveillance, measures to disrupt the market in stolen goods, high visibility checkpoints and more policing on roads supported by automatic number plate recognition technology.