The Garda Ombudsman Commission is Iinvestigating after a high-speed car chase on the M7 last night claimed the life of a woman.
The woman who died in the crash has been named by GSOC as Diana Harton (aged 43) of Claregate Court, Co Kildare.
Shortly before 9pm last night, emergency services were called amid reports that a car had crashed through the toll booth barrier on the M7 at Portlaoise.
A Garda squad car was in pursuit of a green Volkswagen Polo, carrying five people - aged between 13 and 33 - when it rear-ended a Citroen car at the Kildare off-ramp.
The sole occupant of that car - a woman in her late 30s, who was not involved in the pursuit - died at the scene.
The five other people travelling in the Volkswagen are being treated in hospital this morning.
Two gardaí are also receiving treatment in Naas Hospital.
“At this point, it looks as if the car came to the attention of gardaí when it failed to stop going through a toll, so the gardai would have been alerted at that point,” said spokesperson for GSOC, Lorna Lee.
“The gardaí may have believed that the car had been involved in some form of criminal activity earlier on, but as I say, that soirt of detail will come out of interviews etc. in the course of the investigation.”
GSOC is appealing for witnesses, or anyone with information which may assist the investigation, to contact them on 1890 600 800.
The M7 has now reopened northbound between J13 Kildare and J12 Newbridge.