GARDAÍ HUNT ARMED POST OFFICE RAIDER
HANDGUN BRANDISHED DURING FOILED RAID
GARDAI are hunting a brazen lone raider who is believed to have brandished a hand gun during an attempted robbery at the post office in Grenagh on Monday morning.
The foiled raid took place shortly after 9am after a man, who had been seen acting in a suspicious manner outside the premises, attempted to barge his way past the postmaster as he went to open the door of the premises.
During a brief struggle, the raider produced what was understood to be a silver handgun before being pushed back out into the street. He dropped a screwdriver and plastic shopping bag before running away in the direction of the local Catholic Church.
No cash was taken during the incident and the postmaster was uninjured but said to be shaken
The suspect was described as being approximately 5’7” in height, of stocky build and wearing a blue/green padded jacket, grey tracksuit trousers and black runners.
“He had a snood or scarf covering his face and was wearing a pulled-down baseball cap, which made it difficult to see his face clearly. It is believed he spoke with a Cork accent,” said Gurranabraher-based Garda Inspector Gary McPolin.
GARDAI are continuing their search for a lone raider who is believed to have brandished a handgun during an attempted hold up at the post office in Grenagh in broad daylight last Monday morning.
The incident happened shortly after 9am as the postmaster was opening the front door of the premises.
Inspector Gary McPolin of Gurranabraher Garda station said the postmaster had noticed a man acting suspiciously outside the post office in the minutes leading up to the incident.
“As he was opening up the raider tried to push his way through the door and there was a brief struggle during which the man produced what was believed to be a silver coloured hand gun before he was pushed back out the door,” said Inspector McPolin.
He said that during the struggle the raider dropped a screwdriver and a plastic shopping bag before running away in the direction of the local Catholic Church.
These items subsequently underwent forensic examination in a bid to help identify the raider.
“There was no cash taken and the postmaster did not suffer any injuries although he was quite shaken by the incident,” said Insp McPolin.
The suspect was described as being approximately 5’7” in height, of stocky build and wearing a blue/green padded jacket, grey tracksuit trousers and black runners.
“He had a snood or scarf covering his face and was wearing a pulled-down baseball cap, which made it difficult to see his face clearly. It is believed he spoke with a Cork accent,” said Insp McPolin.
Local uniformed Gardai and officers from the detective unit were on the scene within minutes with armed members from the Regional Support Unit (RSU) also in attendance.
As part of their investigation Gardai are in the process of viewing CCTV footage shot in the area around the time of the incident.
Insp McPolin said there were people passing through the village at the time and may have caught the incident unfolding on dashboard cameras.
“It would appear this fella was pacing up and down outside the post office for a number of minutes. We are appealing for anyone who may have seen any suspicious activity in the vicinity of the post office on Monday morning or who may have dashcam footage that could help in our investigation to get in contact with us,” he said.
Anyone with information can contact Gardai in Gurranabraher on 021 494 6200 or the Garda Confidential Line on 1800 666 111.