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GARDAI are investigating if there is a link between a weapon and ammunition seized in Crushrod Avenue and Boyle O’Reilly Terrace, a pipe-bomb explosion in Moneymore and last week’s shooting on the Cement Road.

A man and a woman were arrested after a machine gun, and ammunition for the weapon, were seized near Yellowbatter on Wednesday July 11th.

The discovery was made while Gardai were carrying out searches as part of an operation targeting Dissident Republican activity in the Drogheda area.

At approximately 3pm, a car was stopped in the Crushrod Avenue area of Drogheda and searched. The driver of the car, a woman in her 30s, was found to be in possession of a large amount of prescription tablets. She was arrested and detained in Drogheda Garda Station under section 30 of the Offences against the state act 1939.

A subsequent search of a property in Boyle O’Reilly Terrace, uncovered a machine pistol and ammunition in a car parked at the house. Follow up searches saw a man in his late 40s arrested in Dundalk shortly before 9pm on the same date in connection to this incident.

The arrests and seizure were made before a pipe bomb like device exploded in the Moneymore estate.

No one was injured by the pipe bomb type device which was outside a retail premises in the Moneymore area around 12.30am on Thursday morning. The Garda Press Office confirmed the device “exploded under the frame of a retail premises causing damage to both the premises and to the front window of a house directly across from it.”

“The EOD team were requested to attend, and a number of houses were evacuated until the scene was declared safe by the EOD team at 6.30am.” The device has been classified as a “crude device that functioned”.

“A full technical examination of the scene was carried out by the Louth Divisional Scenes of Crime Unit immediately after the device and the area were declared safe.”

Gardai in Drogheda confirmed they are investigating if there is a link between the three incidents.