Staff assaulted and €3,000 damage caused at debs in Trim

Trim Gardai are investigating reports of assaults on a number of staff members and almost €3,000 of criminal damage at a local hotel where a debs ball was being held on Tuesday evening of last week. Gardai were called to the Castle Arch Hotel at around 3.30am to deal with the incident. While it is understood a number of staff members were assaulted, none required hospitalisation. It is believed the group of school-leavers were from a school in the Dublin area, and were attending a debs dance in the hotel. Glass panes in a stairwell in the hotel were broken, DJ equipment was damaged and the glass in a fridge behind a bar counter was also smashed. Gardai have confirmed that 10-12 staff members have been interviewed and that CCTV footage from inside the ballroom is being examined. It is expected that Gardai will be contacting the school involved to ascertain the identity of those involved in the incident. Trim Gardai are also investigating a serious assault at Avondale in the early hours of Sunday morning that left a 27-year-old man hospitalised and another male and female with minor injuries. The attack, which Gardai believe was random, occurred at Willow Avenue, Avondale, at 2.30am. Two males and a female were walking in the estate when they were set upon by another male and female in a random attack. The 27-year-old man was taken to Our Lady's Hospital, Navan, with facial injuries and a suspected broken nose. The 24-year-old female suffered a cut to her face while the 30-year-old man was left with a black eye. Gardai are appealing to anyone who noticed anything suspicious in the area around that time to contact them. The victims were not robbed during the assault. In other crime in the south Meath area, a 58-year-old man was left shaken after two burglars entered his home at Robinstown, Ballivor, while he was in bed and threatened him in his bedroom. Two men forced the front door of the house between 9.30pm and 10pm on Monday night. The burglars made their way upstairs and entered his bedroom, threatening him to hand over money. The man had no money on him and the culprits left. Gardai are appealing to anyone who noticed anything suspicious in the area to contact them. The man was shaken by the ordeal but was otherwise uninjured.