A MAN has been arrested in Co. Louth after a car was hijacked in Belfast with a 17-year-old girl inside.
The vehicle was taken while it was parked in the Botanic Avenue area of the city with the girl in a passenger seat.
She managed to escape when the car stopped in the Lisburn area, while a man was arrested by gardaí in the early hours of Saturday.
"Police received a report on Saturday, September 28 that a vehicle which had been parked in the Botanic Avenue area had been stolen with a female passenger still in the car," said Detective Sergeant McVeagh of the PSNI.
"The car stopped on the Saintfield Road, Lisburn where the girl escaped from the vehicle.
"The car was observed a short time later driving at speeds in excess of 100mph on the A1 and officers made contact with our colleagues in An Garda Siocháná to inform them the vehicle was driving towards the border.
"At around 2.20am on Saturday, we received a report from An Garda Siocháná to say they had located the stolen car and had arrested a 25-year-old man in Dundalk, he remains in custody at this stage."
Gardaí have said that a man is currently being detained at a garda station in Co. Louth under Section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act, 1984.
“The victim was not injured but left shaken by her ordeal," added DS McVeagh.
"Thankfully, we are not dealing with any casualties after some very dangerous and reckless behaviour by the suspect involved."
