Two men in their 20s were arrested after three Garda vehicles were rammed on the M1 motorway in Co Louth.
It is believed the car the men were in may have been used in a robbery at a filling station near Lisburn in Northern Ireland, about 70km north of Dundalk, earlier in the day.
A Garda spokesman said: "Gardaí signalled for a car to stop which was travelling on the M1 motorway outside Dundalk, Co. Louth.
"The vehicle came to a halt and as Gardaí alighted from the patrol car, the offending vehicle rammed into the patrol car.
"A managed containment operation ensued whereby Gardaí pursued the car, and the offending vehicle was apprehended by Gardaí on the M1 a short time later."
The men were arrested and taken to Dundalk Garda Station where they were detained under Section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act, 1984.
It is understood that the first Garda car to be rammed was an unmarked vehicle which had signalled for the car to stop.
It was hit a number of times before the culprits fled travelling in the wrong direction on the motorway.
No Gardai were injured in the incident, which happened on the M1 southbound between junctions 14 and 15.
Meanwhile, the PSNI appealed for witnesses to the filling station robbery which happened on the M1 southbound on Sunday afternoon.
Detective Sergeant Ricky Thompson said: “It was reported to police that two males entered the premises wearing scarves and baseball caps, one of them was believed to have been armed with possibly a knife or a screwdriver.
"They threatened members of staff and made off with two cash registers.
"They fled the scene in a black Ford Focus which is then reported to have crossed the border, where the vehicle was stopped by our colleagues in An Garda Síochána and two males aged 25 and 26 were subsequently arrested.
“Enquiries are continuing and we are appealing to anyone who witnessed anything suspicious in the area to contact detectives.”
They are keen to hear from motorists who may have dash cam footage.
