Gardai have arrested a man in his 40s for questioning in relation to the theft of paintings and other items from a storage facility in Limerick.

The man who is in his early 40s was detained this morning in the Shannon area and taken to Shannon Garda station. He is is being held there under Section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act.

Gardai in Shannon were assisted by members from the National Bureau of Criminal Investigation and gardai from Naas. They say the paintings were the property of the Department of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht.

They say further planned searches are being carried out in the Limerick area following the arrest.