A 21-year-old man has been charged with several road traffic and weapon possession offences after allegedly brandishing a knife at Gardaí and leading them on a high-speed pursuit in the early hours of Friday, January 5.
The man is from Athlone and was already on bail at the time of the alleged offences.
At approximately 2am on the night in question, Gardaí observed the suspect driving around the Willow Park area of Athlone. When they followed him, the man entered a house in the area and came back out wielding several knives and threatening the officers.
Gardaí were unable to get close enough to arrest the man, who managed to get back into his car and travelled eastwards on the M6 motorway. Gardaí followed the suspect, and radioed for armed backup.
Just outside Moate on the M6, the man’s car was boxed in and brought to a controlled stop by Athlone Gardaí and officers from the armed Regional Support Unit. The man was subdued and arrested.
He appeared before a special sitting of Athlone District Court later on the same day, where he was remanded on bail to appear before the court again on January 24.
