Limerick drug gangs moving into Castlebar

Limerick drug gangs moving into Castlebar


Anton McNulty

MAJOR drug dealers from Limerick and Galway are targeting Castlebar to sell their drugs and are using young people to distribute and transfer drugs around the town.
The grim news was delivered to the Castlebar Joint Policing Committee by Superintendent Willie Keavaney who added that they had evidence that drugs were being sold near teenage discos. He said the tactic employed by the drug dealers was to get young people to transfer small amount of drugs to ensure that if they are caught, only a small amount of drugs would be seized.
“We have substantial evidence that Castlebar is being targeted by dealers from Limerick, Sligo and Galway and I have to say that local people are helping them. They come in with their supplies and offload them to smaller individuals doing the running for them in Castlebar. It is difficult for us because normally when we get a dealer we get a stash but that is not happening.
“They are very cute in their movements and are using young people to move small amounts. If they are caught they will be prosecuted for simple possession and nothing more serious. We have to spend days and days doing surveillance which takes up a lot of manpower but that is what we have to do,” he said.
Supt Keavaney added that many of the people arrested for drug offences were getting released early and explained that on one occasion when a prisoner was being taken from Castlebar to Castlerea at 4pm, he was back in Castlebar Garda Station at 7.30pm signing his bail conditions.
When asked what type of drugs were in Castlebar, Supt Keavaney said there was ‘plenty of cocaine, ecstasy, cannabis and there is evidence of heroin in Castlebar’. “I am saddened to hear that,” was Cllr Eugene McCormack’s reply.
Cllr Blackie Gavin told the meeting that bus loads of young people come into Castlebar every weekend from all over the west and the drug dealers know they have a market. Supt Keavaney agreed with this and said on the night of the Leaving Cert and Junior Cert results, every available Garda was on duty policing those events.
“On the night of the Leaving Cert results there were up to 2,000 young people in Castlebar and they came from places like Tuam, Galway and Ballymote. We had to employ 27 extra gardaí and use all resources to police the event. The venues had to be policed and checkpoints had to be set up to search buses and turn some back because people were drunk,” he said.
Cllr Noreen Heston said that speaking as a mother of a teenager, she was horrified to hear that illegal drugs were for sale on these premises. Supt Keavaney said these discos which take place in the Welcome Inn Hotel and the TF Royal Hotel took place within the normal licensing hours and they could do nothing about them.
However, Cllr Ger Deere said this was a serious problem and suggested that members of the committee along with Supt Keavaney meet with the promoters of the events to express their concern. It was agreed that Cllr Michael Kilcoyne and Supt Keavaney would meet with the promoters.