A man remains in custody after three people were hospitalised following a stabbing incident in Stoneybatter, County Dublin.

Newstalk reporter Andrew Louth told The Pat Kenny Show that Gardaí have ruled out any terror motivations.

“There were reports that said there could have been a link to a row earlier yesterday afternoon, but that was also very quickly ruled out,” he said.

“I think this is what is one of the scarier things about this, it seems to be a very random attack on three people, unrelated to anything else that had happened earlier that day.

“The suspect I’m told is a man in his 20s and he’s - from what I believe – originally from Latin America.

“He is not an international protection applicant and from what I’ve been told, he became homeless in recent months and that he had lived in the Dublin 7 area in the past.”

Stoneybatter. Image: Newstalk/Andrew Louth. 9/2/2025

Andrew said that the man had previously come to the attention of the Gardaí in relation to minor drugs offences.

The suspect reportedly carried out the attacks using a box cutter.

“It was interesting to hear Jim O’Callaghan on Newstalk Breakfast saying we’re very lucky that we’re not talking about fatalities here, [due to] the quick actions of the Gardaí” Andrew said.

“But this does raise the questions again about community policing... Obviously, we know the dangers that Gardaí face every single day, but it was an unarmed Guard who did up apprehending the suspect in the end.

“I think there’s a lot of people in Stoneybatter today who are very grateful for that Guard, especially putting himself in such harms way.”

Stoneybatter. Image: Newstalk/Andrew Louth. 9/2/2025

Labour TD for Dublin Central Marie Sherlock said there is a sense of frustration among locals around the level of policing in the area.

“Firstly, there’s a horrible reality that, you know, if a random knife attack is to happen, it will happen,” she said.

“There’s very little, unfortunately, that the Gardaí can do to prevent that.

“I think there is a second point though that obviously there’s a wider frustration.

“I held two meetings in the Stoneybatter area last year because there is a frustration about the level of community Gardaí in the community and obviously huge desire to have much more.”

Cllr Sherlock said there may be a need to look into a knife amnesty, which would aim to remove weapons from the street by providing bins or collection points where people can drop them off.

Main image: Gardaí in the Arbour Hill area of Stoneybatter in Dublin. Image: PA Images / Alamy. Sunday February 9, 2025.