A Garda traffic officer
was injured yesterday in Fahan after being dragged
by a car driven by a man he had stopped for
questioning.
The Garda, a member of the Burnfoot traffic corps,
was on patrol around 11am with a colleague on the
main Buncrana to Derry road, at Bapsie's Brae, when
they pulled over a driver suspected of committing a
road traffic offence.
Garda Sgt. John O'Keeffe of Buncrana garda station,
said the driver was asked to get out of the vehicle.
However, during the course of questioning, he
suddenly jumped back into his car, a Vauxhaull
Cavalier, and drove off with the garda officer
caught in the vehicle. The officer, who is in his
late 40s, got caught as he attempted to stop the
vehicle leaving the scene.
He was dragged a short distance on the main road and
suffered severe cuts and grazing to his legs and
alongside his body.
He was later treated by a GP at the Buncrana Medical
Centre. The driver, who failed to stop, is believed
to have fled across the border into Derry.
He is known to local gardai who are following a
certain line of inquiry in the incident.
The Burnfoot traffic corps was set up more than a
year ago following a spate of multiple fatality
accidents in the Inishowen peninsula. Anyone who
witnessed yesterday's incident is asked to contact
Gardai in Burnfoot on 93 68194. |
