A teen brandishing a knife was among a gang of up to 30 who forced a north Dublin shop to close early after attempting to ransack it.

The gang tried to loot crates of beer from the shop in St Anne's in Raheny before being stopped by security who locked them outside.

The group managed to take some random items from the store which they then launched at the door.

The gang stayed outside the premises from around 8pm until just after 9pm on Saturday night with the shop deciding not to reopen after they eventually left.

One of the teens, who were seen coming from Raheny Dart Station, was seen earlier holding a knife by a bystander who alerted gardai of his concerns.

One of the people at the shop also reported seeing a teen holding a knife - but thankfully it wasn't used to threaten anyone.

The group, who are believed to be from the Balbriggan area, are known to gardai across Dublin's north coastal villages as they target areas in close proximity to the DART line.

Fianna Fail's Deirdre Heney got in touch with local gardai this evening to enquire about the group as she expressed her shock at the incident.

The local councillor said: "It surprises me and disappointing me that gardai didn't make it down on time to catch them.

"I never hear of occurrences like that in Raheny, it's a well established quite village and there's a great community there.

"It's one of the lesser problematic areas for this type of anti-social activity.

(Image: DCC)

"A big problem with incidents like this is parental responsibility. We need tougher treatment for that type of anti-social behaviour. We're a little bit too easy on people who engage in it.

"They're making people's lives difficult in local residential areas.

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"On the basis of Raheny it's not something I'd come across regularly in terms of my dealings with residents there. It's a great community."

Gardai confirmed they went in search of the gang after they left the shop, but didn't manage to locate them.

A spokesperson said: "Gardaí attended St. Annes Park, Raheny in relation to a call as per your description, Gardaí searched the area and could not locate any males."