IT’S ACTION
GARDAI are hitting back at street-level drug dealers who are using young teens as lookouts and gillies.
Locals have raised issues that youths aged from 13 are being paid by dealers operating in communities in Dublin’s north inner city.
The Star last week joined officers from Mountjoy Garda Station on a Day of Action, led by Sergeant Paul Daly and focusing on criminality in the area.
In one early morning raid, gardai targeted a lower-to-mid level drug dealer who’s based in the Ballybough area.
Residents in Dublin’s north inner city have raised concerns over teenagers being lured into roles for drug dealers.
And Superintendent Martin Mooney explained how youngsters are using e-scooters in their roles for drug gangs, but vowed that his team will keep targeting them.
The senior officer, in the force for 40 years, told us: “In the
Ballybough and Summerhill areas we have street-level dealing there.
“You can see youngsters there on the e-scooters, either as lookouts up and down the street or alternatively you see when money is paid over, they could walk over to a stash, come back with say just the bare amounts. So if they are caught they only have to say a small amount as if you’re in possession.
LEAD POINT: Superintendent Martin Mooney in Mountjoy
“What you are catching at the scene is small amounts because they know themselves if they are caught with a small amount that’s only possession for their own use.
“But our operations do have an impact there where there is a deficit of drugs.”
Level
He added: “And for the community aspect and to reassure them, every now and then we have days of actions where we target the lowerlevel dealers there.”
Supt Mooney also explained that Operation Canter — which is a high-visibility uniform presence that deals with predominantly drug dealing or public order issues — is in place in the Ballybough, Summerhill and Sean McDermott areas.
The Day of Action saw officers gather at Mountjoy station for a briefing by Sgt Daly on the searches they were carrying out.
Two teams were deployed and while the drugs search was happening in Ballybough, another raid was simultaneously taking place at a property in Meath.
Alloys had been stolen from a car and investigations established that a bogey business was selling stolen car parts and it is suspected they were linked to the stolen property.