Teen arrested after barricading himself inside restaurant in Midlands while armed with a hammer

A teenager was arrested inside the doors of a restaurant in Longford town on Wednesday after barricading himself in a toilet while armed with a hammer.

The incident took place shortly before 5pm when officers responded to reports that a young man had been spotted with the implement along the main street area of the town.

It has been reported that gardaí were searching for the youngster when they were alerted by staff from a local restaurant that the suspect had ran into a toilet and locked himself in.

When officers arrived, the toilet area was closed off with gardaí emerging moments later after arresting the suspect along with the hammer.

A garda spokesperson confirmed a teenager was arrested yesterday in connection to the incident before later being released without charge.

A file is now expected to be forwarded to the Gardaí's Juvenile Liaison Office over the coming days.

"Gardaí attended an incident that occurred on the Main Street of Longford Town, Co Longford at approximately 4:40pm yesterday, Wednesday, April 5," said the spokesperson.

One male juvenile was arrested in relation to this incident and later released pending referral to the JLO (Juvenile Liaison Office).