A man has been arrested in connection with a hit-and-run incident in Co Wexford which left two gardaí hospitalised.
The man, aged in his 40s, was arrested on Tuesday morning by gardaí after he was located in the Murrintown area of the county.
The man is currently being detained at Wexford Garda station.
A social media campaign had been launched by gardaí who were concerned for the man's welfare, asking the public to search out-houses and land in the Kilmore Quay area.
The two gardaí were hospitalised after two patrol cars were rammed by a stolen vehicle which had been involved in a joyride incident on Sunday night.
The squad cars were rammed in two separate incident just after 5pm, close to the village of Kilmore Quay, by a car believed to have been stolen from the Piercestown area.
Joyride
In the first incident, an officer approached the stolen car and the driver reversed at speed into the garda car before driving off.
A back-up patrol car was also rammed on the Kilmore to Baldwinstown road when officers radioed for help, injuring gardaí in the second car. The joyrider then went on to collide with another privately owned vehicle.
The Garda helicopter was drafted in to search for the driver of the stolen car but failed to locate him.
The injured gardaí were brought to Wexford General Hospital by ambulance following the incident, but their injuries were described as minor and they were subsequently discharged.
“Gardaí in Wexford have arrested a man in connection with a car theft and joyriding incident in the Piercestown and Kilmore Quay areas on Sunday night," a statement said.
"The vehicle was subsequently reported to have been involved in multiple road traffic collisions in the Wexford area on the evening of Sunday, January 23rd including collisions with two official Garda vehicles in the Kilmore Quay area. The offending vehicle failed to remain at the scene of these incidents.”
The statement added: “Gardaí had been treating the driver of the car as a missing person. Investigations are continuing.”
The stolen car has since been recovered.
