Gardaí have arrested a man and taken away two firearms for examination after a daylong stand-off in Co Wicklow following efforts to take possession of a large house and lands.
The Irish Times understands the operation was based on a High Court order, secured by a bank against the homeowner. It was being enforced – and was eventually executed – by staff from the Wicklow County Registrar and the Dublin County Sheriff.
When they arrived at the scene in Delgany on Monday morning, the occupant of the house refused to co-operate. The personnel present saw what they believed to be a firearm inside the house and Garda backup was requested.
A large team of gardaí, including armed officers, made their way to the property and a stand-off continued through the day before being brought to an end, with no injuries reported, at about 3pm.
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While news outlets were aware of the incident through the day, Garda Headquarters requested a media blackout until the situation could be resolved. After the arrest of the man, and the seizure of two firearms, the blackout was lifted.
A Garda statement said it was asked to attend the scene in Delgany after “a male had barricaded himself into a property following the attempted execution of a High Court order by a third party”.
An “operational command” protocol, for barricade incidents, was put in place and an on-scene commander was in attendance. Local Garda negotiators were also brought to the property, as well as members of the Armed Support Unit, with a cordon put in place.
“The incident was peacefully resolved shortly before 3pm following negotiations. No injuries were reported,” the Garda added.
“The male involved, aged in his 50s, was arrested at the scene under Section 30 of the Offences Against the State Act, 1939. He is currently detained at a Garda station in the Eastern Region. Two firearms were recovered and seized by gardaí.”
The stand-off occurred at the substantial property, owned by a businessman, which was to be repossessed following a court ruling over unpaid debts, initially for tens of millions of euro. A number of people were at the centre of the case, including the owner of the property in Delgany.
The outcome of the court action was that enforced possession was ordered in respect of a number of properties, in Co Wicklow and south Dublin, as part repayment of an outstanding loan with a lending bank.
The matter had been before the courts for years and is related to a loan secured during the Celtic Tiger era to develop a business on lands that were for sale. However, when the financial crash occurred, the business plans ran into difficulties and the value of the land purchased for the project plummeted.
The value of the properties subject to the enforced possession orders would likely have repaid the sum being pursued by the lending bank. The majority of the remainder of the debt was to be written off, as part of an arrangement that appeared to have been reached between the lender and the parties involved.
However, that agreement was not concluded, resulting in the effort to enforce the possession order at the Delgany property on Monday.
