About 30 raids were carried out across Ireland today as gardaí moved against a Limerick crime gang blamed for the murder of rugby player Shane Geoghegan.
More than a dozen homes were searched at dawn in the Ballinacurra Weston area of the city - home to the Dundon-McCarthy faction - by local gardaí, supported by specialist units.
Mr Geoghegan (28), was murdered on his way home from a friend's house on Sunday. It is believed he was mistaken for the intended killer's target, who is understood to be a member of a rival gang.
More than 2,000 mourners attended Mr Geoghegan's funeral yesterday where his former teacher, Fr Jim Maher, said he hoped the attack would become a turning point in the gangland war waged by the city's violent criminals.
Garda Commissioner Fachtna Murphy later confirmed to an Oireachtas committee that a total of 30 searches were carried out across the state as part of the operation.
He added that his officers will "knock in doors" wherever they can find evidence in the fight against gangs.
"For the most part, there is a very small core of people who are reckless, who are often coked up to their heads when they are going out doing these crimes," the Commissioner told the Public Accounts Committee.
"We have to ensure that we bring them to justice," he added.
"We will pull out these people but at the end of the day when my people have to go down to the courts, we must have evidence and we must have the directions of the DPP that we can bring evidence before the courts."
Mr Murphy recalled the murder of Veronica Guerin in 1996 when he was asked to head up the Criminal Assets Bureau. The Garda was ready and able to respond to the latest escalation in gangland violence in Limerick, he said.
The Dáil held a parliamentary debate this afternoon on Mr Geoghegan's murder. Party leaders delivered statements and Minister for Justice Dermot Ahern took questions from the Opposition during the 90-minute session.
On Tuesday, Taoiseach Brian Cowen held a meeting in his office with the Garda Commissioner, the Minister for Justice and the Attorney General Paul Gallagher.
Mr Ahern has said efforts to tackle organised crime in Limerick are ongoing. They include city-wide CCTV, 24-hour covert operations, deploying the Emergency Response Unit and basing the country's first regional rapid response unit in Munster.
New areas of reform are being looked at including retrials following an acquittal due to perjury or intimidation, new laws on covert surveillance and a review of the law on the videotaping of suspects.
Up to 40 associates of Limerick's feuding criminal gangs are currently in prison, according to the Garda. Of the 16 gangland murders in Limerick since 2003, people were facing charges in ten cases while the six others were currently live investigations.
Garryowen Rugby Club said yesterday it would retire the No 3 jerseys at the club for the rest of the season as a mark of respect to Mr Geoghegan. A minute's silence will be observed at this weekend's rugby international in Croke Park between Ireland and New Zealand.