Gardaí made aware of far-right threat to Wexford haulage firm – ‘If you betray us, you’re putting your business at risk’

Wexford Gardaí have been made aware of a veiled threat made against one of Ireland’s biggest haulage firms, hours after a major fire ripped through an industrial estate which is home to their Welsh offices.

Nolan Transport was on the receiving end of a veiled threat from an anti-immigrant Facebook page following the fire on Friday night.

A 25-year-old man was arrested in the UK following the blaze, which originated in the neighbouring Owens Group warehouse in the Bridgend Industrial Estate in Wales.

It is understood that the fire spread to neighbouring properties, including Nolan Transport, with the Owens Group offering “sincere apologies for all of our fellow businesses in the immediate area who have been impacted by this unfortunate incident”.

Many posting on social media over the weekend mistakenly believed that it was Nolan Transport’s premises in Wexford that was the epicentre of the blaze, with one particular threatening and baseless post from an anti-migrant page the subject of a complaint to Gardai.

“Nolan Transport Wexford bussing fakeugees around Ireland against our wishes,” the sinister post read.

“The message is clear if you ignore and betray us Irish people. You are putting yourself and your business and premises at risk.”

When it was pointed out that the location of the fire was in Wales, the poster went on to update.

“Wales has taken in too many too,” the updated post said. “People are out protesting on their streets over there too with regards their safety and the sky high amount of fakeugees.”

The page then went on to post a YouTube link to the song ‘Disco Inferno’ by The Trammps with the caption “Burn baby burn” and a series of laughing emojis.

When contacted for comment, a spokesperson for Nolan Transport said: “Someone is after getting the wrong end of the stick. It wasn’t our premises at all.”

The spokesperson declined to comment further in relation to any damage that may have been caused to their premises.

Suitably concerned with a rise of far-right rhetoric online and a number of high-profile incidents which have seen properties set alight around the country in recent times, Wexford Sinn Féin councillor Tom Forde has personally raised the content of this particular post with An Garda Síochána.

“It’s unacceptable for any individual or group to be inciting violence against any business or person,” he said. “In my view it’s a threat anyway and it’s incitement.

“I do not believe for one minute that any Wexford person would believe in putting the lives or property of a good local employer at risk in this manner.

“Many people have differences of opinion with government policy and the way to challenge that is to use your voice in protest and use your vote, not to hide behind a page and to threaten others.”

Cllr Forde conceded that it can be hard for gardaí to establish the individuals behind these anonymous Facebook pages, but stressed the importance of taking action against accounts that incite violence.

“I think this type of thing needs to be taken seriously,” Cllr Forde concluded.

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