Family held hostage in post office raid
A terrified family were held hostage overnight as part of a post office heist, it has emerged.
Three men wearing balaclavas and armed with iron bars and wooden clubs entered the home of the family – who run the post office at Ballymahon in Co Longford.
The robbers held three family members in the private living quarters attached to the post office after they entered between 2am and 3am.
The three people were held captive and threatened for several hours.
Gardaí have confirmed that the gang then made off with a quantity of cash and officers were alerted around 8.25am.
None of the victims were physically injured in the incident. The scene was preserved for forensic examination.
Gardaí at Ballymahon Station have appealed for anyone who saw any suspicious or unusual activity late last night or in the early hours of this morning to contact them.
This is the second attack at one of the country’s post offices in the past week after a raider attempted to rob a post office on Dublin’s Botanic Avenue on May 6 last.
In that attack a brave customer foiled the attempted heist and knocked the armed robber to the ground.
