Gardaí investigating attempted car hijacking in Leitrim

Gardaí are investigating what is believed to have been an attempted car hijacking at a filling station on the Boyle Road in Carrick-on-Shannon, on Friday, November 29, 2024.
At approximately 5:40 a.m., two cars—one a white Audi and the other a black Vauxhall Vectra—were refueling at a filling station when they were targeted by a gang of four men. One car was rammed, and the owner of another vehicle was chased behind the station by men wielding iron bars.
Speaking to Ocean FM’s North West, one of the victims described the terrifying ordeal.
“A white Audi pulled in to get diesel, then a black Vauxhall Vectra arrived shortly afterward,” the victim said.
“The occupant of the Vectra asked the other driver to put a tenner’s w orth of diesel into their car, but that person refused. Then, the same individual approached me, asking if the machine took cash.”Sensing that something was amiss, the other driver began recording the encounter on their phone. “He must have suspected something,” the victim recalled. “When the suspects noticed him filming they sped out onto the road and then spun back in.”
The suspects returned armed with metal bars.

“They approached me again while I was still refuelling. They tried to take my drums, but I managed to get them inside my car,” the victim stated.

“The other occupant of the car was driving through the pumps and they spun around and hit his car head on,” said the victim.

Things then took a turn for the worst when the gang got out of the car armed with bars.

“Three men chased me down the back of the filling station with bars, while another man searched my car for valuables. They ran for my car. I had seen them crash into the man’s car so I knew I had to go. I pulled the keys from my car and ran down the back and two of them followed me with bars.”

“They approached me again, I was still filling my car with diesel, and attempted to take the drums off me, but I managed to get them into my car,” they said.
The situation worsened when the gang rammed another vehicle. “The other car was moving through the pumps when they turned and collided with it head-on,” he described.
Four men then exited the Vectra and chased the other individual. “Three men chased the person down the back of the filling station with bars, while another searched my car for valuables,” he said.
The situation became more intense when the individual fled. “I saw the suspects crash into the other car and knew I had to escape. I pulled the keys from my car and ran behind the filling station, with two of them following me with bars.”
The individual then described how they managed to escape. “One of the suspects searched my car while another tried to catch me on the other side, but I managed to get away and reached the height and ran onto the Boyle Road,” he said.
The other person involved in the incident was able to get help. “The man whose car was rammed drove onto the road and flagged down a lorry driver, who then contacted Gardaí,” the individual explained.
The experience left the victim shaken. “It was a very frightening experience. I’m not myself right now. I’m very nervous. I'm on medication and I've been to the doctor since for the stress this has caused me. An innocent person just going about their business, and to be attacked like this...” he said.
The victim said he thought the criminals had Dublin accents, and he was certain they were not local men. He said they were driving a car with a Laois registration number, and that after they fled he saw drink in the back of their car, and joints nut he wasn't sure if they were under the influence of anything.
He offered a warning to others: “Be very careful. There are gangs going around now, especially with Christmas approaching. Hopefully, this is a one-off incident in Carrick-on-Shannon, but we can’t be sure.”
A Garda statement confirmed that no injuries were reported and that no arrests have been made at this time. Gardaí are urging anyone with information about the incident to contact them in Carrick-on-Shannon at 071 965 0517, the Garda Confidential Line at 1800 666 111, or any Garda station.