Over €750,000 in drugs seized in Mayo this year

A TOTAL of €761,000 worth of drugs has been seized by gardaí in the first eight months of this year. This includes €548,000 of cannabis and €209,000 of cocaine, as well as €720 of ecstasy and €1,657 of other drugs.

The first eight months of 2023 also saw 23 incidents of the sale and supply of drugs, up one from the the same period in 2022. More than €17,000 in cash has also been seized as part of various drug-related operations.

Simple possession cases currently have come down, with 51 so far this year compared to 79 in the first eight months of 2022.

Over 700 drugs search operations have been conducted by gardaí in Mayo since the start of 2022, while 107 drug-related incidents are also being investigated as part of Garda Operation Tara.

The figures were revealed at the Mayo Joint Policing Committee meeting, which also heard that reports of burglaries, shop thefts and sexual assaults have all increased so far this year.

In the first eight months of 2022, 467 property crimes were recorded. This figure has risen to 604 for the same period this year.

All areas of property crimes saw a decrease, except for burglaries and theft from shops, which have seen a ‘significant increase’.

There have been 113 burglary incidents so far this year, up from 85 in the first eight months of last year.

Crimes against the person, which include various forms of assault, have reduced from 540 in the first eight months of 2022 to 390 so far in 2023.

Sexual offences, including rape and sexual assault, have increased from 25 to 44. Fraud cases have seen a significant decrease, dropping from 461 in 2022 down to 184 this year.

Incidents of criminal damage have increased to 214 cases so far this year, up from 194 during the same period in 2022.

Detective Superintendent Tom Colch told the JPC that Operation Thor has been established to catch criminals seeking to take advantage of longer nights, which he said would present ‘great challenges’ for gardaí. “We will be tailoring that to suit our own policing plan down here in Mayo,” he told the JPC.

“It will involve, obviously, our own policing plan from our crime units, our community engagement units, and our crime prevention units, but also the community.”

He added that an operation is ongoing to tackle the rise in shop thefts, in liaison with businesses and retailers.