A high-ranking officer of the Garda has denounced a brutal assault by an armed collective on a family residence, which culminated in a 12-year old girl requiring urgent medical intervention for a busted skull. The girl sustained this injury after being struck on her head with a hook.
Superintendent Gary McPolin, who is in charge of Community Engagement by the Garda in the North West district of Cork, has declared the Monday night assault on the domicile on New Line, located in Charleville, to be deplorable. He is appealing to the general population to aid the Garda in apprehending the guilty party.
Authorities suspect that this assault on the residence and a vehicle, both on New Line in Charleville, is a consequence of a growing feud between two larger families. One family is situated in Charleville and its nearby territories in North Cork, while the other has its roots in Limerick, specifically in Patrickswell.
The assault in Charleville, which saw the girl injured, windows of her residence destroyed and the family car vandalised, is thought to be connected to a previous incident in Patrickswell. In this incident, which took place a fortnight ago, a car was assaulted and a house’s windows were shattered.
Investigations have launched a scan of social media platforms to locate a video uploaded by a Charleville group affiliate. The video is believed to be an instigation or a dare for a physical confrontation by members of the Patrickswell group, following their defeat by Cork in the All-Ireland hurling semi-final held at Croke Park.
In the aftermath of this, the atmosphere between these two factions has been volatile. Gardaí across North Cork and Limerick were on heightened alert last night, with additional Gardaí patrols on the lookout for any counter-attacks in response to the Charleville incident.
In a terrifying incident on Monday night, a young 12-year-old girl was at home with her three younger siblings and their mother when their residence was attacked by a group of five armed individuals, wearing masks. One of the attackers shattered their front door’s glass window using a hook, severely injuring the girl who was standing nearby. She sustained a deep wound to her head and multiple cuts from the broken glass. Although she remained conscious, she was bleeding heavily upon the arrival of ambulance staff from the Health Service Executive, who immediately initiated efforts to stop the flow of blood.
The injured child was speedily transported to Cork University Hospital. After performing scans, the doctors discovered a fracture in the girl’s skull due to one of the bone fragments being pushed inward. Following this revelation, she was immediately shifted to Children’s Health Ireland at Temple Street at 5am on the following Tuesday for urgent surgery. The operation is thought to have been successful, and she is currently under induced coma to aid her recovery. A statement from the Garda Press Office on Tuesday afternoon confirmed that her condition, while serious, is stable.
It is reported that the traumatic event has deeply impacted the girl’s mother and her siblings – two girls and a boy – coming as it did shortly after their father and two other male relatives had stepped out of the house. Post the attack, when Gardaí arrived at the scene in Charleville, they promptly secured the area and initiated a forensic investigation of the premises. Moreover, the car involved was also taken to a safe location for a detailed forensic inspection.