Gardai have vowed to tackle street-level drug dealers operating in broad daylight while also fighting back against assaults, thefts and anti-social behaviour in the capital.
Dublin Live spent a day with officers from Pearse Street who patrol the busiest areas of Dublin city centre ensuring the streets are safe under Operation Citizen. The initiative, which was set up by the former Assistant Commissioner Anne Marie Cagney in 2021, now has 28 gardai and four sergeants working across four units.
Operation Citizen has been highly successful and delivered numerous arrests and charges. Dublin Live joined Sgt Brendan Brogan, Gardai Joe O’Connor, Gillian Slane, and Barry Mullins on patrol.
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In one incident, a man was arrested after he attempted to steal designer T-shirts from a store on Grafton Street. Cops also detained three men who had bench warrants out for their arrest after they failed to appear in court on previous occasions.
And we saw gardai apprehend a woman suspected of shoplifting in another shop in the city centre. We witnessed plain-clothes officers search five individuals which resulted in three arrests including one in which a man appeared to swallow some small bags believed to be narcotics.
Another man was nabbed for having a knife. Later on in the evening, we raced to Temple Bar after there were reports of a fight but this was broken up and the victim refused to make a statement.
During the course of the day, 15 people were arrested while 10 were brought before the courts. Sgt Brogan said the South Quays had a particular problem with drugs.
He added: “There is a problem and it’s visible at times but it is one we are tackling on a daily basis. It’s an undercover-type approach but in addition, there is a high-visibility policing presence with uniformed gardai to try and displace, frustrate and apprehend people in the act of taking, selling or supplying drugs. Behind every warrant, there is a crime and behind every crime, there is a victim.”
Supt Dermot McKenna stressed the importance of a high-visibility approach and revealed the crime rate in the city centre has fallen in the last five years. He said: “The aim is to provide reassurance that the city centre is a safe place to come, to visit, to shop and to work in. Our high-visibility uniform presence has helped us to achieve that.
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“We will continue to engage with people at every opportunity. We are in a much better place but will continue to work hard as we will never take these positive results for granted.”
Supt McKenna acknowledged that drug use in the city centre was still a problem but said specialised units have had “great returns” and made clear gardai will continue to clamp down on those involved. He acknowledged there are people who have a history of drug misuse and are looking for help. He urged those who are seeking assistance to come forward.
While the area the officers at Pearse Street cover might be small geographically, it is probably one of the busiest nationally for footfall. Supt McKenna continued: “It is an area which is very popular.
“There are almost 600 licensed premises in this area making it a popular place for stag and hen parties. It is a condensed but very busy area where you are guaranteed to meet somebody every few yards. The aim is for gardai to engage with people at every opportunity and at the earliest opportunity.
“We will strategically assign gardai to specific areas at specific times, depending on crime patterns to act as a deterrent and provide reassurance. Crime is going to happen but our aim is to best deploy gardai in those high-volume crime areas at pertinent times in order to maximise our chances of preventing and detecting crime. In order to assist our investigations, people are urged to immediately report if they have been a victim of crime or notice any suspicious activity.
“We are judged not just by our proactive approach but also by our response, how we investigate, how we provide support to victims and how we take a human rights approach to every investigation. Policing is not just the responsibility of An Garda Siochana alone. We collaborate with other agencies whether it be the hostels, Dublin City Council, or public representatives. We need the support of everybody to be successful.”
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Supt McKenna said he expects up to 400,000 people to head into the city centre this month for the St Patrick’s Day parade on March 17 and to socialise after the Ireland v England Six Nations’ clash on March 18. He added gardai will engage with people but stressed there is a “tiered response” to every incident and officers would “act accordingly” if somebody crossed a line. The senior officer also said there is a “zero tolerance” approach to drinking on the streets.
Supt McKenna added: “If people are stepping over the line in terms of public order they will be arrested. In relation to drug taking, we will engage with people who are potentially involved in drug use. We have powers to stop and search people when there is a reasonable suspicion that they are involved or in possession of controlled drugs. We have made arrests which have led to significant seizures of drugs.”
He also praised his officers and said: “It is constant for them, it is 24/7 and it’s challenging. There are a lot of investigations that require immediate follow-ups. It is important to acknowledge the absolutely serious work and the sacrifices they make. There is no such thing as a day off for them. We are lucky with the team that we have here.”
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