Garda Dublin city cameras to tackle crime

The Garda Commissioner Noel Conroy has said that deployable observation cameras are now being piloted in Dublin city centre to tackle drug dealing, anti-social behaviour and other activities.

Speaking at the annual conference of the Garda Representative Association in Westport, Mr Conroy said initial indications were that the scheme was yielding positive results.


Earlier gardaí said that criminals are attempting to take out contracts on officers for up to €10,000 and that threats against gardaí had appeared on Internet sites.

AdvertisementThe association is seeking, as a matter of urgency, legislation to protect the identity of gardaí who have been involved in investigations of dangerous criminals.

It also voted unanimously to seek legal provision to allow any garda involved in a firearms incident to give evidence behind screens in any legal proceedings.

Detectives from Dublin told the conference being held in Westport, Co Mayo, that bullets have also been left on gardaí's private cars, the homes and families of detectives have been threatened, and threats against individual gardaí have also appeared on sites on the Internet.

The conference also heard that the decision by gardaí to seek anonymity for those involved in armed situations was brought about by the identification of such a garda in the media at a time when he had lost his wife and child in childbirth.


Earlier, it was claimed that suspects may walk free without being questioned because their human rights are being breached by deplorable conditions in garda stations.

The claim is expected to be put before delegates at the conference which opened this morning.

The conference will hear that most garda stations do not have basic custodial facilities to enable gardaí to detain suspects for up to seven days, as provided for under the new criminal justice legislation, without breaching their human rights.

Gardaí say the legislation could provide a legal opportunity for major criminals to walk free from garda stations once arrested without being questioned about serious crime.

McDowell defends Govt

In a statement this morning, the Minister for Justice, Michael McDowell, said the Government has demonstrated a huge commitment to improving the standard of garda stations and facilities throughout the State with the biggest ever garda building programme under way.

Mr McDowell said €112m will have been spent on garda stations between 2005 and the end of this year, with new state of the art and refurbished stations opening the length and breadth of the country.

He said that the National Development Plan, in recognition of the provision of appropriate accommodation, allocates €260m towards the provision of appropriate support facilities for An Garda Síochána.

Source: RTE.ie