violent attack | 

‘Good quality’ CCTV secured as net closes in on suspects in horrific attack on Croatian men in Dublin

Gardaí have also been tracing the movements of the two victims on Saturday to establish a possible motive for the incident.

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Detectives have secured “good quality” CCTV footage in an effort to identify four suspects involved in a violent attack in west Dublin over the weekend.

Two men, who are both Croatian nationals understood to be aged in their late 20s, were assaulted in Clondalkin on Saturday night.

One of the young men suffered catastrophic head injuries and lost several teeth after being targeted in the Grange View Way area shortly after 10pm. Last night he remained in a critical condition in Tallaght Hospital and medical staff have grave concerns over his condition.

His friend was also injured in the ­incident and received medical ­treatment for non-life-threatening injuries. At this stage, gardaí believe four males were involved in the vicious assault and have gathered “good quality” CCTV footage as part of the investigation to identify those involved.

No arrests have yet been made, but sources said investigators are confident of establishing who was at the scene of the attack.

Gardaí have also been tracing the movements of the two victims on Saturday to establish a possible motive for the incident.

It is believed the pair had been socialising in Dublin city centre that afternoon before returning to the Clondalkin area. They were involved in a verbal altercation with a group outside a store in the Towers Road area before getting on a bus and travelling to Grange View Way.

Shortly after arriving in the housing estate they were set upon by a gang of four men and subjected to a vicious assault.

Detectives are investigating if the two men were followed to where the attack occurred, or if another altercation near the scene led to them being targeted.

One source said: “Gardaí are making good progress in this investigation, efforts are ongoing to establish exactly why they were attacked and a number of lines of inquiry are being pursued.

“The man in a critical condition is in a very bad way as a result of extremely serious injuries suffered during this assault. It is not looking good,” they added.

The victim’s family, who live abroad, were contacted over the weekend and informed of the incident.

A section of the residential area was also sealed off on Sunday, with gardaí carrying out a technical examination and combing the nearby green site for evidence linked to the attack.

Gardaí said that they are appealing for witnesses who were in Clondalkin village or the Bawnogue area on ­Saturday evening to contact them.

In particular they are looking to speak to anyone who was in the Tower Road area of Clondalkin between 9.30pm and 10.15pm, anyone who was travelling on the number 13 bus between ­Clondalkin and Bawnogue between 9.45pm and 10.15pm and anyone who was in the Grange View Way area of Clondalkin between 10pm and 10.30pm.

“Any road users who may have camera footage (including dash-cam) are asked to make this footage available to gardaí. Anyone with any information is asked to contact Clondalkin garda station on 01 666 7600, the Garda Confidential Line on 1800 666 111, or any garda station,” a garda spokesperson said.