Gardai praised for pandemic work

LICENCED PREMISES INSPECTIONS UP

THE on-going work being carried out by the gardai is supporting communities throughout the COVID-19 pandemic has been praised by members of the Dundalk Joint Policing Committee.

The committee chairman, Cllr Sean Kelly, commended the gardai for their response to the pandemic and their role in protecting communities.

‘We’ve all seen videos where gardai get hassle from a small number of members of the public,’ he noted at last week’s annual public meeting which held over ZOOM.

The meeting heard while most headline crimes were down, gardai have been very busy ensuring that the lockdown and Level 5 regulations were being complied with.

‘ Thre has been a huge increase in the number of inspections of licensed premises,’ Inspector Liam Archibald informed the meeting, adding that they had found ‘a huge level of compliance with the regulations.’

A total of 818 inspections had been carried out up until November 1 this year, an increase of 323% on the same period last year. Inspector Archibald revealed that there was just one prosecution pending from one licensed premises in the district.

There had also been a huge increase in the number of checkpoints carried out as a direct result of the pandemic, with gardai engaging with people to ensure that they have a proper level of understanding of the restrictions.

Gardai had also stepped up the number of visits to elderly people as part of Operation Cara which had started in the Carlingford area and had been extended to the rest of the county.

They had responded to problems in Carlingford in the past and Halloween had been relatively quiet this year as they had a strong policing policy in place and a good presence there on the night.

John Temple, representing the PPN, said that he had received emails from twelve voluntary groups who had contacted him wishing to thank the Gardai for their work during the pandemic, particularly in rural communities.

Cllr Antoin Watters praised the ongoing operations in Carlingford, saying the gardai were doing great work, linking in with rural residents through Operation Cara. It was very much appreciated and was making a big difference.