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Four OPW vehicles were targeted, as well as outbuildings used by OPW staff. OPW
Kildare
Three arrested for €400,000 worth of vandalism at OPW site near Castletown House
Two teenagers and a man in his 30s were arrested following a garda search this morning.
THREE PEOPLE HAVE been arrested in connection with vandalism worth an estimated €400,000 at an Office of Public Works (OPW) site used by staff at Castletown House last month.
The arrests were made this morning following a search operation conducted by gardaí at a number of homes in Celbridge, Co Kildare, located close to Castletown House estate.
Two teenagers and a man in his 30s were detained by gardaí shortly after the search.
Gardaí say the arrests relate to several separate incidents of criminal damage that occurred between 22 April and 4 May at Donaghcumper House.
The property is used as a staging site for transporting OPW staff to nearby Castletown House, a historic estate at the centre of an 21-month controversy – as residents have opposed the OPW’s proposals to use a narrow pedestrian walkway for heavy vehicles.
Vehicles and facilities used by the OPW were targeted over the May Bank Holiday weekend at the site.
Four OPW and contractor vehicles were overturned, allegedly using a teleporter which was later dumped in the River Liffey, while outbuildings and staff welfare units were set on fire and four CCTV towers were disabled after their wiring was cut.
Minister of State with responsibility for the OPW, Kevin ‘Boxer’ Moran, described it as “shocking and unacceptable” in a statement last month.
Save Castletown Gate Protectors, a local group who have maintained a presence at the entrance to Castletown House in protest against the OPW for 18 months, similarly condemned the incident.
The estimated cost of the damage was in the region of €400,000.
The three are being held at garda stations in Kildare.
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