Following a spate of sexual assaults in the country's capital, it has been confirmed that the Gardaí have identified a chief suspect in their investigation.
The attacks which have been taking place since December sparked an investigation which required the deployment of undercover officers and has ultimately resulted in the identification of a key suspect.
Despite the number of attacks and suspicious approaches since the end of last year, the Gardaí chose not to issue a description of the suspect to the public - a decision which is reportedly in keeping with a policy not to issue warnings to the public.
Commenting on the approach, the Garda Press Office explained: "At that point, for investigative and operational reasons, a decision was made based on the information available to gardaí not to issue an appeal in respect of these incidents."
"The Shankill community policing unit regularly informs and liaises with the local community in relation to matters around personal safety. Some five weeks later, two incidents of a similar crime category occurred on February 9 and 10. At this juncture a public appeal was issued by An Garda Síochána."
Elaborating further, they continued: "At all times, An Garda Síochána are mindful of the necessity to preserve the integrity of the investigation and to respect the privacy of all victims of crime, particularly where the offences are of a sexual nature."
Sources speaking to the Irish Independent have confirmed that while a suspect has indeed be identified, arrests have yet to be made in the case.
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