A large number of criminal activities including incidents of attempted murder, drug dealing and cybercrime were successfully tackled during 2014 with information provided by calls to the confidential Crimestoppers service.
In Munster and Connacht, information given to Crimestoppers led to cannabis seizures and arrests.
In Leinster, drugs including heroin, cocaine and cannabis herb with a combined street value of over €25,000 were seized and arrests were made.
According to a new Crimestoppers report, the service received an average of 138 calls every month during 2014. The most common calls requiring action include drug dealing, sexual offences, cybercrime and road traffic offences.
The Crimestoppers’ freephone number 1800 250025 provides a confidential means for every citizen to report crime, without fear of recrimination and is open from 9am until 9pm daily. Calls are answered by trained Gardaí and are dealt with in the strictest of confidence. Callers do not need to leave their name or address.
Over 1,600 calls were made to Crimestoppers during 2014. A number of significant arrests and seizures arose as a result of these calls.
Apart from many drug-related successes, others included:
· Evidence from an attempted murder was recovered, allowing vital forensic evidence to be secured
· A man was arrested for internet based sexual offences
· Illegal immigrants were identified
· A viable firearm was seized
· A two high-powered cars were recovered from a car-ringing gang
· Arrests were made for fraudulent selling of electronic goods
· The arrest of an individual wanted on an outstanding warrant and road traffic offences
A native of Ennis, Colin McGann has been editor of The Clare Champion since August 2020. Former editor of The Clare People, he is a journalism and communications graduate of Dublin Institute of Technology.