GARDAI 'WERE ON THE MONEY'

Chiefs back officers guarding faulty ATMs...Minister demands system crash answers

- PAUL HEALY

GARDA chiefs defended officers clearing queues at ATMs as people tried to access "free" money.

Commissioner Drew Harris is backing officers who stood outside the machines amid the chaos that ensued when Bank of Ireland suffered a major IT failure on Tuesday night.

Finance Minister Michael McGrath has ordered the Central Bank "to establish a full account of what happened, why it happened and what will be done to avoid a repeat".

Bank of Ireland said it has resolved the glitch which also saw customers unable to access its Banking 365 App.

It confirmed anyone who withdrew or transferred money while the system was down would see that "designated as a debit".

While the exact total figure taken was not disclosed, a Bank of Ireland spokesperson said the "volume of transactions conducted last night wouldn't be a significant proportion of our overall transactions volumes through an average day".

Photos and videos circulated across social media of crowds gathering at ATMs as many could withdraw up to €1,000 even if their account did not have those funds available.

CRITICISM

Pictures then emerged of gardai standing in front of ATMs, seemingly blocking public access to them sparking criticism on social media.

However, it is understood Garda management is standing firmly behind the decision by some officers to stand outside the ATMs with sources arguing they did so to prevent violence and were largely ordered to do so by local senior officers.

Garda management will reject any notion that officers were deployed at ATMs when there aren't enough resources to police the streets.

One source said: "This was absolutely not a decision taken nationally from garda management or following any complaint from the Bank or the Government. It was very much a local decision on a case-by-case basis.