Gardaí condemn home invasion that leaves 12-year-old girl in hospital with serious head injury – The Irish Times

A senior police officer has condemned a brutal attack by an armed gang on a family home which left a 12-year-old girl requiring emergency surgery to treat a fractured skull after being struck in the head with a hook.

Detective Superintendent Gary McPolin, head of Garda Community Engagement in Cork North West, said the attack on a house on New Line in Charleville late on Monday evening was horrific and urged members of the public to help police bring the perpetrators to justice.

“This is absolutely reprehensible – a gang of armed men attacked a family home late at night and injured a 12-year-old girl who had to undergo emergency surgery after suffering a serious head injury. It really is the most abhorrent act,” Detective Inspector McPolin told The Irish Times.

“This was a horrific incident where a family were attacked in their own home and I would appeal to anyone who can help the police to please report the matter – there can be no complacency or apathy from bystanders as we need people who can help us to report the matter.”

Gardaí believe the attack on a house and car at New Line in Charleville is part of a growing feud between two families, one of which is based in and around Charleville in North Cork and the other with bases in Limerick, including Patrickswell.

Gardaí believe the attack in Charleville, in which a girl was injured, her windows were smashed and the family’s car was damaged, is linked to an incident in Patrickswell two weeks ago, when a car was also attacked and the windows of a house were smashed.

Investigators have begun searching social media for a video posted by a member of the Charleville faction calling for a fight against members of the Limerick faction following Cork’s victory over Limerick in the All-Ireland hurling semi-final at Croke Park.

Tensions have been rising between the two groups since then, with gardaí in North Cork and Limerick put on high alert last night, with extra officers patrolling the area in the hope of retaliatory action following the attack in Charleville.

On Monday evening, the 12-year-old was at home with her three younger siblings and was standing in the hallway in front of her mother when one of five masked and armed attackers smashed the glass in the front door with an axe.

The girl was struck on the head, suffering a serious laceration and multiple cuts from broken glass. She was conscious but bleeding heavily when HSE ambulance staff arrived at the scene and attempted to stop the bleeding.

The girl was taken by ambulance to Cork University Hospital, where X-rays showed a fractured skull and a bone fragment had been embedded. At 5am on Tuesday, the girl was taken to Children’s Health Ireland in Temple Street for emergency surgery.

The operation is understood to have been successful and the girl remains in a medically induced coma to aid her recovery. The Garda Press Office issued a statement on Tuesday afternoon saying the girl remains in a serious but stable condition at Temple Street.

It is known that the girl’s mother and her three younger siblings, two girls and a boy, suffered deep psychological trauma as a result of the attack, which occurred shortly after the children’s father and two other family members left the house.

Gardaí responded to the attack in Charleville and the scene was immediately cordoned off, and on Tuesday Gardaí began forensic examination of the property and the car was moved to a secure location for examination.