On Monday, an Irish man drove his truck through the gates of the Russian consulate in Dublin, drawing cheers from bystanders in protest of Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine.
According to The Irish Times, Desmond Wisley, a businessman from County Leitrim in northern Ireland, was detained for criminal damage and remains in detention following the event. On Tuesday, he is scheduled to appear in court.
Around 1:30 p.m., video of the event shows the back of a delivery truck bursting through the front gates of the embassy, prompting cries of “Bravo” and “Good man” from protesters carrying posters outside the gates. There were no injuries.
Wiley can be seen getting out of the truck and passing out pamphlets with images of what he claims.
“I just done this to create a safe corridor for the Russian ambassador to leave Ireland,” he said, referring to Yuri Filatov, who has held the position since 2017.
“I want the bastard and his colleagues to leave this country, leave this free country and go back to calling where there’s no freedom,” Wiley told the small crowd in the clip, motioning towards the embassy.
“It’s about time we stood up,” he continued. “We’re all sleeping on our couches, cozy in our own houses and we have to do something.”
“This is my contribution today as a working man, and I’m delighted I did it.”
Wiley then approaches a female Garda officer and shows her his flier explaining why he did it.
“Unfortunately, I have to arrest you right now for hazardous driving,” she said.
“I’ve done my part lads,” Wiley proclaims as the officer brings him away uncuffed. It’s past time for Ireland to do their part.”
Initially, the Russian embassy claimed that Ireland had broken international law by allowing the incident to occur while law enforcement “stood idle.”
In a statement to The Irish Times, an embassy official stated, “The embassy strongly condemns this criminal act of insanity committed against a peaceful diplomatic office.” “The embassy regards this incident as a clear and blatant violation of international law.”
“The occurrence is really concerning. “We believe that no rational person could endorse such irrational and brutal conduct,” added the spokeswoman.
In a follow-up statement, the embassy assumed a lighter tone, thanking Irish officials for their support.
“We would like to advise that further precautions have been done by the Garda to ensure safety and security of the embassy and its personnel,” the embassy said.
“The embassy appreciates the Irish authorities’ cooperation in this case.”
On Monday night, law enforcement placed defensive barriers in front of the embassy. Since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine 12 days ago, the embassy has been the subject of daily protests.
According to The New York Times, demonstrators have thrown red paint several times.
Last week, Filatov accused Irish protesters of being “rough and really aggressive,” and accused Ireland of being on the front lines of “anti-Russian events” in the European Union, The Times reported.