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Niall Carson/PA Archive/Press Association Images

4x4 set on fire at Quinn plant in Cavan

CEO Paul O’Brien said it was ‘reckless in the extreme’ stating that employees were in the area that the car was driven in to.

Updated 19.05pm

A 4×4 WAS driven into the Quinn packaging plant in Cavan last night.

At around 9 pm the 4×4 went through the security fence and was set on fire.

The two men who were in the vehicle also set fire to the foyer of the building causing extensive damage.

The pair then fled the scene of the Ballyconnell plant in a black estate type car.

Emergency services were called to deal with the fire. Nobody was injured but there was extensive smoke damage.

‘Reckless’

The CEO of the packaging plant at Ballyconnell, Paul O’Brien, said that the attack was “reckless in the extreme”.

In a statement this evening, he claimed the “fire bomb vehicle” was driven into an area that is used by employees throughout the night. “It was only by good fortune that no one was injured,” he said.

He added:

I want to make it very clear to all involved that my resolve and that of my management team, the Board of our Group and our owners and investors, is only strengthened by these attacks the most recent of which are designed to prevent the sale of any of the Group’s assets.

We have a clear objective to protect, maximise and, over time, realise the value in the businesses for our owners; we will not be deterred from this objective.

He said that the strategy of those that carried out the attack is to  strike fear into employees and to “discourage any genuine prospective acquirers of our businesses”.

Government

O’Brien said that the group are planning to meet the Governments, north and south of the border, to “agree on measures to stop these attacks and to bring the perpetrators and, more importantly, their sponsors, to justice”.

He added that “the international investment world an impression of lawlessness is being created by these attacks which has the potential to have serious negative impact for the island as a whole and the border region in particular”.

He concluded by stating that the attack last night was on the employees – “on their lives and livelihoods – and on the local community”.

Gardaí  are investigating the attack and are appealing for the public to come forward with any information.

No arrests have yet been made.

This is the latest attack on premises previously owned by Seán Quinn.

Additional reporting Christina Finn. Originally published 8.45am.

Read: Petrol bombs thrown outside former Quinn property in Fermanagh>

Read: Bus set on fire outside Quinn Group property>

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61 Comments
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    Mute Pixie McMullen
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    Dec 23rd 2018, 5:18 PM

    Jeez, but i hate to even read that word Heroin, it`s the scourge of so many towns and cities.

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    Mute John Mc Donagh
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    Dec 23rd 2018, 5:49 PM

    @Pixie McMullen: More loot for the greedy lawyers!

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    Mute Jim Buckley Barrett
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    Dec 23rd 2018, 5:59 PM

    @John Mc Donagh: awful on those criminals breaking the law, making thy lawyers rich.

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    Mute MAJOR PAIN
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    Dec 23rd 2018, 6:05 PM

    A slap on the hand and a suspended sentence incoming

    58
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    Mute Mazza86
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    Dec 23rd 2018, 6:40 PM

    @MAJOR PAIN: With zero accountability either and people think the Gardaí are the problem…

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    Mute Bill Clay
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    Dec 23rd 2018, 6:09 PM

    Gards looking bad (again) to the public, start the spin machine with all the good news bust stories.
    I’m almost surprised theres not one of one of them walking an old lady across the street, but they’ve used that one already.

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    Mute Darcy
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    Dec 23rd 2018, 6:28 PM

    @Bill Clay:so according to you drugs worth 500k should not be reported in the news because it’ll only make the Gadai look good ? Are you not a believer of credit where it’s due ?

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    Mute Mazza86
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    Dec 23rd 2018, 6:37 PM

    @Bill Clay: To be fair, despite the bad press of a few, the vast majority, by and large, continue to conduct their duty professionally and with utmost diligence. In my opinion the good work of the majority of Gardaí is not highlighted enough and that goes for all first responders too.. So unless you’ve walked in their shoes you will have no idea of what they face on a daily basis to keep you and everyone else safe…

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    Mute Bill Clay
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    Dec 23rd 2018, 6:43 PM

    @Darcy: of course these stories are supposed to make them look good, that’s what their press office is for.
    But yes if more of these drugs were taken off the street well yes credit where it’s due.
    But that still doesn’t change the fact that they’re rotten to the core

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    Mute Darcy
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    Dec 23rd 2018, 6:58 PM

    @Bill Clay: again tarring everyone with the same brush ..some not all are

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    Mute Sean
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    Dec 23rd 2018, 8:22 PM

    @Bill Clay: For fans of The Wire this is known as”drugs on the table” policing. The drugs are put on the table. There is a picture of them in the media possibly with the Garda Commissioner, the message goes out that a blow has been struck in the War on Drugs. The kicker is that nothing changes. Drug seizures are factored into the price charged for hard drugs in the same way that spillage is allowed for by breweries dealing with kegs of beer. The prohibition on drugs does have one noticeable side effect – it increases the price and the profits for the drug wholesalers, and at the end of the chain, the Mr. Bigs / Mrs. Bigs.

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    Mute Mary Dunphy
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    Dec 24th 2018, 12:14 AM

    Well done to the Gardai.

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    Mute Michael Carolan
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    Dec 23rd 2018, 6:06 PM

    There won’t be blow this Christmas

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    Mute Tom Lavin
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    Dec 23rd 2018, 6:09 PM

    Street value, now I don’t know where you get your cocaine from but its only worth 200,000

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    Mute mick scanlan
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    Dec 23rd 2018, 6:37 PM

    €500;000 not €480.000 Really

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    Mute Patrick Kilbane
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    Dec 23rd 2018, 7:55 PM

    Insert ‘White Christmas’ joke here

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    Mute Barra O Brien
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    Dec 24th 2018, 2:18 AM

    That’s Christmas ruined for a few people, Conor are you listening?

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