Detective numbers drop by 20 per cent in the metropolitan region

By Brendan Grehan

THERE HAS been a 20 per cent decrease in the number of Garda detectives working in the Dublin Metropolitan Region (DMR) which includes Tallaght, Clondalkin and Lucan.

In May 2015 the DMR had 55 detectives and in October 2016 there were 44 detectives. The worrying figures were revealed in a parliamentary question from the justice spokesman for Fianna Fáil, Jim O’Callaghan.

Local TD and O’Callaghan’s party colleague, John Curran has described the drop in the number of detectives in the DMR as “inexcusable”.

Deputy Curran said: “In October just passed, there were just 804 detectives in the force, an 11 per cent drop since May 2015 when there were almost 100 more detectives on the streets. The decreases throughout divisions appear to have accelerated in 2016, with 70 detective positions being lost since last May.”

Deputy Curran said that in his own area, which includes, Tallaght, Clondalkin and Lucan, there had been a 20 per cent decrease in less than 18 months.

He said: “In May 2015 the DMR had 55 detectives and the latest figures for October 2016 show 44 detectives. It is simply inexcusable given the outbreak of violent gangland crime in our capital city that we do not have a greater number of detectives working across divisions to protect our communities.”

The drop in detectives could be due to some officers being redeployed to other specialist units as a result of the ongoing Kinahan/Hutch feud.

The feud erupted in the capital with the shooting dead of Kinahan lieutenant David Byrne at the Regency Hotel last February and it was the continuing crime story of 2016.

The most recent killing was in December when Noel Kirwan was blasted to death as he sat in his driveway in Clondalkin.

Garda figures show that up to December 6 there have been 44 arrests over gang-related killings, while five people have been charged in connection with those deaths and another three charged on related matters.