M9 crash: What happened when? From attempted break-ins to fatal collision

Gardaí have gathered CCTV footage, including from camera door bells at private houses, showing young males trying to break into cars and houses in Co Kildare just hours before five teenagers were killed in a crash on the M9 early on Sunday.The investigation team at Athy Garda station believes the youths captured in the footage are the same boys who later died near Moone after colliding with another vehicle while driving in the wrong direction down the motorway.The deceased have been named locally as Kamil Pustkowski (17) from Limerick; Jack Kennedy (17) from Athy; Jeremy O’Brien (18) from Carlow; Joe “Joey” Carthy (15) from Athy; and Alex McCarthy (17) from Carlow.The BMW they were in was not registered to any of them or their families, but was not stolen. It is believed to have been purchased for about €1,000 early last week.READ MORESaturday night into Sunday morningA number of young males recorded attempting thefts in Athy, Co Kildare, appear to be travelling in the same BMW that was involved in the crash hours later. Gardaí in the Carlow-Kildare area become aware that a vehicle carrying a group of teenagers was active in the region at around this time.Portraits of the five boys killed: Jeremy O’Brien (18) and his cousin Alex McCarthy (17) from Carlow; Joey Carthy (15) and Jack Kennedy (17) from Athy, Co Kildare, and Kamil Pustkowski (17), from Limerick. Photographs: Social media accounts/RIP.ie Sunday 2am to 3amIt is unclear precisely how the alert about the BMW was initially triggered but, at about 2am, a group – believed to be the boys who later died – was spotted in Athy. They were driving around and opportunistically checking house and car doors to see whether they were unlocked, so vehicles or cash and personal belongings could be quickly stolen.Once the activity in Athy was brought to the attention of An Garda Síochána, apparently via calls from the public, gardaí in patrol cars began looking for the BMW vehicle in and around the Co Kildare town. A number of members of the force in a patrol car attempted to intervene and bring the BMW to a stop. While there were further reports of the car at various locations, including at a service station off the M9 near Kilcullen, the BMW had left by the time gardaí arrived.It is understood the vehicle was driven along the M9, in the correct direction, for a period at that time and also on more minor roads just off the motorway. The vehicle was moving around in an area between junctions 4 and 2A of the motorway, which are about 30km apart.[ Gardaí to receive pursuit training for the first time in aftermath of M9 crashOpens in new window ]During this time, gardaí believe the teenagers were trying to provoke them into a protracted pursuit. However, while they were pursued earlier near Athy, it is understood no pursuit took place while they were driving in the wrong direction on the M9. Sunday 3amThe BMW was driven down the M9 at least twice in the wrong direction in the period immediately leading up to the crash. On the first occasion, it did a U-turn, which corrected its direction, before the vehicle was driven off the motorway and into a service station near junction 2A at Kilcullen.The car was then driven back on to the motorway, travelling south on the northbound carriageway. Gardaí were in that area at the time and suspect the occupants of the BMW had either seen Garda activity, or believed members of the force were close by, and so embarked on another stint of wrong-way driving on the M9.Gardaí had set up an operation at the top of the junction 3 off-ramp, where they were ready to deploy “stingers”, devices thrown quickly across a road to burst car tyres.However, rather than leaving the motorway, the BMW continued on and then crashed in the Hyundai at Moone at about 3am.After the crashThe alarm was raised by others driving on the motorway who came across the crash scene. Gardaí were nearby and arrived quickly, as did the emergency services. The four people travelling in the Hyundai – three sisters and a seven-year-old boy, who is the son of one of the women, were removed from the vehicle and taken to different hospitals.Alma and Niamh Kinsella, who were in the front of the car, were critically injured. They have since made progress and were on Wednesday both regarded as being in a serious condition. Their younger sister Ella Hendricken, and the boy, were in the back of the car. Their condition was described as serious initially.From left, sisters Ella Hendricken, and Niamh and Alma Kinsella, were injured in the M9 crash, along with a seven-year-old boy, and remain in hospital with serious injuries. They had left their homes in Carlow very early on Sunday to travel to Dublin Airport, where they planned to catch a flight to Britain for a family wedding. InvestigationGardaí are trying to piece together the precise movements of the BMW in the hours before the crash. However, as the five people travelling in the car are dead, their findings will be used to inform inquest proceedings rather than a criminal investigation.A number of sources said the attempted break-ins the teenagers appear to have been engaged in before the crash are typical of a wave of offending – carried out by youths in stolen cars or unregistered “ringers” (cars they have purchased) – that the force is regularly trying to combat. In many cases, cars imported from Japan, which are not fitted with immobilisers, are stolen for joyriding.The issue has become so common in recent years that it has coincided with a sharp rise in vehicle thefts nationally. ‘Lucky Dip’ gang The issue of joyriding is often linked to the so-called “Lucky Dip” gang. In reality, the gang name was created by the media and the activity linked to it is part of a crime wave or trend rather than the work of a group of specific individuals.[ TikTok ‘monitoring’ M9 crash content and defends record on removing harmful postsOpens in new window ]Organised gangs stealing cars to strip down and export as parts are also influencing the upward trend in theft of cars. These are well-drilled, for-profit, operations. Those dubbed members of the Lucky Dip gang are mostly involved in joyriding for fun. They usually record their outings and share the footage on social media. While they are also involved in robberies and burglaries, the joyriding is mainly recreational. One of their prime motivations is to provoke a pursuit from gardaí and to record it for sharing, mainly on the social media platform TikTok.