Fiosrú concluded that Gardaí acted in line with law and Garda policy during a short, authorised pursuit of a BMW that later entered the M9 and crashed on 16 August 2026. The collision killed five teenage boys and left four people in the other car seriously injured. The Control Room ordered the pursuit to end when the vehicle entered the motorway, and subsequent attempts to stop the car failed before the fatal head-on crash. The independent inquiry was opened after a mandatory referral and aimed to reconstruct the events.
Watchdog: Gardaí Followed Policy During M9 Pursuit That Ended in Fatal Wrong‑Way Crash
The collision occurred on the M9 Northbound at Junction 3 on 16 August [PA Media]
Fiosrú, the independent Irish police watchdog, has found that Gardaí acted in accordance with law and Garda policy during a short pursuit of a car that later entered the M9 motorway and collided head-on on 16 August 2026.
The crash on the M9 near Athy killed five teenage boys who were in the BMW and left four members of the other vehicle’s family seriously injured. The watchdog’s inquiry examined the sequence of events and the decisions made by officers before the collision.
According to the investigation, Garda units began following the BMW for a short period on the N78. The pursuit had been authorised by the Garda Control Room. When the vehicle entered the M9 dual carriageway travelling against the flow of traffic, the pursuit was terminated and the control room confirmed that units should not continue the chase on the motorway.
Other garda units later attempted to deploy a stopping device at an appropriate location. The BMW performed a number of U-turns and then collided head-on with an oncoming car, causing the fatalities and serious injuries.
Police Ombudsman Emily Logan said the force acted "in line with relevant policies and procedures as determined by the Garda Commissioner." She reiterated that any death following contact with gardaí must be referred to Fiosrú for independent investigation.
The watchdog emphasised that its investigation was independent of gardaí and focused on reconstructing the events that led to the collision. Fiosrú also noted this is the sixth reported incident involving garda interaction with vehicles driving the wrong way on the road between 2021 and 2026.
Fiosrú expressed condolences to the families and friends of the victims and to the officers who attended the scene as it published its findings.
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