, and A dramatic two hour rampage involving major police operations on both sides of the border was sparked this morning after two men robbed a bus in which three tourists were travelling. Gardai are continuing to question two men in their 20s after three people were taken hostage when a bus was hijacked at Dublin Airport in the early hours of this morning.
Two PSNI vehicles and several garda vehicles were rammed, while air support and emergency response units were also mobilised during the night of chaos. The shocking incident began when the three innocent passengers – a English couple and Colombian tourist — were sitting in a shuttle bus belonging to a well-known hotel which was parked on the roadway in front of Terminal 2 of Dublin Airport at around 1am.
It’s understood the bus driver was assisting passengers off the bus at the time.
Two men got on and locked the doors, effectively trapping the passengers inside, and drove off in the direction of the M1 motorway.
A source said the passengers were eventually allowed out near Julianstown, Co Meath, a 30-minute drive away.
It is understood the three tourists were not physically harmed.
Independent.ie can reveal that the suspects are known to Gardai for theft and burglary offences.
The two men then continued north and were located by gardai near Drogheda in Co Louth and followed through Dundalk where it then crossed the border into Northern Ireland.
In a statement the PSNI confirmed that they “received a report from our colleagues in An Garda Síochána that a stolen transit van had been tracked crossing the border”.
“Officers observed the vehicle in Crossmaglen Square, and upon police entering the carpark the transit van collided with the police vehicle causing damage to the front of the car,” a spokesperson said.
“The transit van then made off from the area and re-crossed the border,” they added.
No PSNI officers were injured during the incident.
The men in the minibus then diverted back into County Monaghan.
It is understood the bus crashed after crossing south of the border but the two men escaped on foot and stole a parked car while the smashed bus was left blocking the roadway.
Gardaí gave chase and two suspects drove south.
The stolen car was intercepted by Garda Regional Support Unit members with assistance from Garda Air Support near Castleblayney in Co Monaghan a short time later.
The occupants of the car were arrested shortly after 3am. They were detained under Section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act, at Carrickmacross Garda Station in Co Monaghan.
Investigations into the incident, involving gardai from different divisions in Dublin, Meath, Louth and Monaghan, as well as the PSNI, are ongoing.
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