Car strikes cyclist trying to avoid a Garda checkpoint
By Maurice Garvey
A CAR involved in crashing into a cyclist in Ballyfermot on Tuesday night, had just carried out a U-turn in an effort to avoid a garda checkpoint.
The road traffic incident happened at the junction of Landen Road and Sarsfield Road at around 8.55pm on Tuesday.
The incident occurred on Sarsfield Road
The Echo understands two males driving a Mercedes vehicle, spotted a checkpoint on Sarsfield Road and made a swift change of direction, heading back towards Ballyfermot.
However, the car collided with a woman cyclist and a lamppost.
Gardai arrived on the scene to find the Mercedes driving slowly around a roundabout.
Two men were arrested and detained at Kilmainham Garda Station for public order and road traffic offences.
A garda source said the woman has suffered serious injuries, but they are not though to be life threatening.
The woman, in her 40’s, is a foreign national who lives in Ballyfermot with her partner.
Fractured spine
The Echo understands she suffered a number of fractures, including a fractured spine, a gash to the head, and is being treated at St James Hospital.
Gardai had a checkpoint in place on Sarsfield Road as part of Operation Hybrid, which was set up in recent years to provide an armed response to organised crime in Dublin.
A garda source said: “The vehicle turned away from the checkpoint and back up Sarsfield Road, colliding with a lamppost and a pedestrian at the junction of Sarsfield Road and Landen Road.”
The driver was a local man in his 40’s.
The Garda Ombudsman Commission (GSOC) is investigating the incident – standard practice if there is garda involvement in a collision where anyone is harmed – and are expected to refer the matter back to gardai.
