Yesterday, one man was arrested and a Garda car had its tyres slashed during the same afternoon, following protests at a building site in Clonmel, South Co. Tipperary. The incidents occurred as construction workers moved in to commence the construction of an entrance to the south Tipperary site, yesterday morning.
Some 15 protestors attended at the site and the young man, aged in his 20s, was arrested following a public order offence. About two-thirds of yesterday’s protesters were local, with one-third of those in attendance observed as being anti-immigrant protesters, who do not reside in the area.
The arrested male is currently detained pursuant to Section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act 1984, at a Garda station in the Co. Tipperary area.
An Garda Síochána said it respected citizens’ constitutional right to protest, but this right did not extend to breaches of criminal law, or the interference with the rights of other citizens to carry out their daily activities, or to attack members of An Garda Síochána.
Gardaí from the Tipperary Divisional Drugs Unit have seized an estimated €65,000 worth of cannabis herb and arrested a man, following a joint operation involving the Garda National Drugs and Organised Crime Bureau, and Revenue.
The operation was carried out on Friday last, June 7th 2024, following a search conducted at a property in Thurles, Co. Tipperary. Over 3kg of cannabis was located at the searched location, (pending analysis), together with other drug paraphernalia.
A man aged in his 20s was arrested at the scene by Gardaí and detained at a Tipperary Garda station under Section 2 of the Criminal Justice (Drug Trafficking Act) 1996. He was later charged and will appear before the Courts at a later date.
Target of at least 1,000 Garda Reserve members by 2026.
Garda Reserves bring a variety of experiences and perspectives to AGS to support community policing.
Increase in the stipend for Garda Reserve Members to a maximum of €3,000 per annum.
A new recruitment campaign for Garda reserves, opens for applications today Wednesday, June 5th 2024 and will close on July 4th 2024.
The Garda Reserve is a volunteer service drawn from local communities. Reserves work alongside full time Garda members performing varied work, including with the Road Traffic Unit, ensuring public safety during State visits, policing public order incidents, assisting with crowd control at large scale public events and supporting the regular day-to-day community policing work of An Garda Síochána.
An increase in the maximum tax-free stipend to be paid to Reserve Members from €1,000 per annum for over 100 hours of volunteering in a year to €3,000 for over 200 hours of volunteering has now been secured and a graduated scale of stipend will apply depending on the total number of hours volunteered.
The new graduated scale for the stipend for Garda Reserve Members is set out on the table below.
Hours Completed
Rate Of Stipend
50 Hours
€500
100 Hours
€1,000
150 Hours
€2,000
200 Hours
€3,000
The Garda Reserve was first established in 2006. There are currently 341 serving Garda Reserve Members. At its peak in 2013 the number of Reserve Gardaí reached 1,164. A target has been set to reach at least 1,000 Garda Reserves by the year 2026.
The Garda Reserve represents a real opportunity for anyone wishing to support policing and give something back to their communities. Reserves bring a variety of experiences and perspectives to the organisation, including local knowledge and links to the communities in which they serve, which brings to life An Garda Síochána’s core value of community policing.
Prospective candidates can visit publicjobs.ie for more information on how to apply.
So far this year, (during quarter one of 2024), 80 people have lost their lives on Irish roads, sadly the worst record in a decade.
Over the bank holiday weekend, up until 7:00am this morning [June 3rd], 137 motorists have been arrested for intoxicated driving.
On the M7 near Nenagh, Co Tipperary, An Garda Síochána set up a road safety checkpoint, using number plate recognition technology, as well as their mobility application; targeting vehicles approaching their checkpoint, which saw officers arrested one man on suspicion of committing an offence under the Road Traffic Act. During this check, dozens of motorists were breathalysed to identify those who may have had alcohol or drugs in their system.
Gardaí are currently looking at implementing a system whereby motorists with dash camera footage of road traffic offences, will be able to upload same footage to an online portal system, thus allowing Gardaí to check and possibly use same in road traffic prosecutions.
Former Thurles born Circuit Court Judge, teacher, Tipperary State Solicitor and Tipperary Fianna Fáil Councillor, Mr Gerard O’Brien has today been sentenced to four years in jail for the sexual assault of six boys, some 30 years previously.
Mr Gerard O’Brien, aged 59 years, had been a secondary school teacher Tipperary State Solicitor, and later a Fianna Fáil Tipperary Councillor, before subsequently becoming a judge.
He had been found guilty of one count of attempted rape and eight counts of sexual assault; which took place between 1991 and 1997, when the victims were aged between 17 and 24 years old. Four of the six boys were students or former students at that time from his school, Christian Brothers College (CBC) Monkstown, in south Co. Dublin. Mr O’Brien was in his late twenties and early thirties at the time when these offences were committed. He had initially denied all the allegations, but was found guilty by a jury last December 2023.
The presiding judge stated that Mr O’Brien had misused his disability to take advantage of his victims, thus engaging in predatory behaviour and the jury had no doubt that he had manipulated matters to give him the opportunity to engage in these activities.
Mr O’Brien was born with the rare congenital condition, known as Phocomelia, which has resulted in him being born with no arms and only one leg; same injuries brought on by the congenital anomaly of the drug Thalidomide, brought into prominence as a characteristic side effect of the use of the drug, used during pregnancy. The court heard that O’Brien needed assistance dressing and undressing and visiting the toilet. To this end, Judge Alexander Owens had delayed sentencing in order to hear from prison authorities regarding the measures they could put in place to deal with O’Brien’s disabilities.
Prosecuting counsel Ms Anne-Marie Lawlor said O’Brien had developed inappropriate relationships with students, which involved giving them alcohol and taking them to the pub. The court heard there was a culture of excessive alcohol use around the school at the time.
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