A garda needed emergency surgery after his high-powered personal firearm accidentally discharged inside his patrol car.
Sources said the officer sustained a gunshot wound to his ankle.
A number of sources added the incident occurred at Mayorstone Park Garda station in Limerick city.
The circumstances surrounding how the gun fired remain unclear.
Management “referred” the matter to investigators attached to the Garda Siochana Ombudsman Commission.
A spokesman confirmed it had “received a referral to an incident yesterday”.
He added: “GSOC is not making any further comment at this time.” Sources said the garda underwent surgery to try to repair damage to his leg.
They added the garda is attached to the regional Armed Support Unit.
Each member of the elite team undergoes months of specialised firearms training.
They are armed with lethal weapons including, a Sig Sauer P226 9mm self-loading pistol and a Heckler & Koch MP7 sub-machine gun. The unit also carries a Benelli M4 Super 90 semi-automatic shotgun in its patrol cars.
Sources claimed the bullet that struck the garda was discovered resting inside his patrol car, near the footwell of the vehicle. Forensic officers recovered and removed the spent shell for a technical examination.
A source said the garda injured in Thursday’s shooting is “very respected” in the force and is very experienced in using firearms. They added the ASU and ERU (Emergency Response Unit) were previously armed with Uzi machine guns but these were decommissioned in favour of the MP7 sub-machine gun.
The source said “The Uzis were taken out and the MP7s brought in because they were deemed to be better and safer.”
The security source added it was always possible that some part of a gun may “degrade” which could possibly lead to a malfunction.
It’s unclear if the garda in question was with colleagues at the time or alone in the car when the gun discharged.
Sources said the officer was on duty at the time and he may have been about to go on a break when the gun went off.
