Gardaí are investigating a pipe bomb attack on the parental home of a serving Garda member.

The parents of the garda were at home in their Dublin property on Monday night when the device exploded at the front door.

The Irish Times understands that while the garda does not live with his parents, detectives investigating the incident believe his job in targeting organised crime may be the motive for the attack.

The garda is attached to a specialist Garda unit that investigates crime gangs.

The device exploded at about 10.30pm, damaging the PVC front door with what are believed to have been nails packed into the device.

The area was sealed off and the Army's bomb disposal team were called in to perform post-blast analysis.

The remains of the device were then taken away for examination.

The Garda investigation into the incident is continuing.