Sharp rise of crimes against Laois Gardaí linked to 'ill informed' social media comments

Crimes against Laois Gardaí are up by 500% this year with 'ill informed' social media encouragement partly to blame according to the county's Chief Superintendent.

The number of crimes against Laois Gardaí rose dramatically in the first four months of this year.

From January to April 2021, there were 12 incidents of the crime called Assault/ Obstruction/ Resisting Arrest of a Peace Officer.

That compared to two incidents in the same period in 2020.

Laois Garda Chief Superintendent John Scanlan confirmed the figures as part of his report to the quarterly Joint Policing Committee meeting held online on June 21.

“Some of it comes out of one incident, but it is what it is," he said.

The Chief Supt said social media debates encourage non compliance with Gardaí. 

“Sometimes irresponsible encouragement in non compliance of the guards needs to be challenged. It’s a creature sometimes of what is said on social media. We’ve often seen widespread debates, ‘guards shouldn’t be doing this and that’. Ill informed stuff. We’re open to oversight on all fronts but the people that we sent out on the streets to do their job are merely doing their job and asking people to behave themselves and conduct themselves reasonably. 

“As we open the economy and the nighttime economy takes off again, and this goes back to drinking outside. Drinking in the inside world or outside, it doesn’t really matter where the drink is consumed, but when you have a lot of people who are consuming alcohol there will be a rise in some of these, particular around minor assaults and public order. 

Law is clarified over drinking in public in Laois

"But these figures are good, they’re for an entire quarter for the entire county. They’re at the better end of any figures in this state," The laois Garda Chief said.

Numbers of the crime Assault Causing Harm doubled from 8 to 16.  However four other types of crimes against the person dropped. Minor assaults dropped from 67 to 51. Harassment dropped from 11 to five. 

Menacing Phone Calls dropped completely from eight to zero. Lastly, the crime of ‘murder - threats to kill or cause serious harm dropped from 12 to 8. 

In total, the number of crimes against the person in Laois dropped by 15%, from 108 down to 92.

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