GARDAÍ OPENED fire on a car in which two convicted sex offenders and two teenage women were travelling in Limerick yesterday after the car rammed an unmarked patrol car.
The shots were discharged in the southside suburb of Dooradoyle after a silver-coloured Peugeot failed to stop for an unmarked patrol car shortly after 4.30pm.
A sex offender in his 20s, with an address in Dublin, was driving the car, and a 27-year-old Limerick criminal was travelling in the passenger seat. Both men have convictions for sex offences. The two women with them are aged 19.
Gardaí pursued the Peugeot down a cul de sac beside Regional United soccer club’s grounds off the Dooradoyle Road. The car was reversed at speed and driven against the Garda car in an attempt to ram it out of the way. The Peugeot was also repeatedly rammed against a second unmarked patrol car, which joined the pursuit.
It is understood four shots were fired by a garda at the tyres of the Peugeot in an attempt to prevent it from driving over two gardaí who had got out of one of the patrol cars. Nobody was injured but one garda was taken to the Mid Western Regional Hospital where he was treated for shock. There were unconfirmed reports he suffered a minor injury to his hand.
The two men were arrested at the scene and taken to Henry Street and Roxboro Garda stations, where they were being held last night under section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act.
The criminal with the Dublin address is a convicted sex offender who is also wanted on robbery charges. The Limerick man is a convicted rapist who served a lengthy prison sentence.