Garda blitz on street crime

Drug dealers, thieves and violent thugs are targeted in city centre

- DANNY DE VAAL

OFFICERS ON PATROL TO BRING LAW & ORDER TO THE CAPITAL

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.

The Irish Mirror 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.

The Irish Mirror joined Sgt Brendan Brogan, Gardai Joe O'Connor, Gillian Slane, and Barry Mullins on patrol.

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.