Drogheda’s top Garda thanks local people for their “phenomenal” support in war on drug gangs
Drogheda’s top Garda, Chief Superintendent Christy Mangan, has thanked local people for their “phenomenal” support in the battle against the drug dealers and criminal gangs that have blighted so many lives in the Drogheda area.
Chief Superintendent Mangan was also warm in his praise for support agencies such as the Red Door Project and suggested that they deserved much greater funding.
Speaking at a media briefing yesterday, the Chief Superintendent said that the past three years had been very difficult for many people in Drogheda with many living in fear of violence or having their property damaged.
Referencing the Drogheda Standing Together Against Violence protest which took place in January 2020 when the people of the town and political leaders from all parties stood shoulder to shoulder at the Bridge of Peace, he said:
“We have received phenomenal support from the people of the town and I’d like to commend them for the assistance they have provided to us on a daily basis.”
He added that people have often stopped him and other Garda members in the street to thank them for the job they are doing.
“We would be big supporters of the demand reduction agencies here in the town and in Dundalk because ultimately people who become addicted to drugs need help from addiction practitioners, not police attention.
“Those agencies need to be highly resourced and sadly that’s not the position at the moment. They are a fantastic resource, they really are, but they are always outlining to us that they are under-resourced. They are the unsung heroes.
“People like the Red Door and the Family Addiction Network are dealing with the fallout of drug addiction issues on a daily basis” he said.
He described the Geiran report, which is strongly in favour of giving the addiction agencies the seriously increased level of funding they need, as “a template for the future which we need to be acting on as quickly as possible.”
Asked whether he thought the Gardaí were winning the battle against criminality and the trade in illicit drugs, Chief Superintendent Mangan said that there is a continuing and huge demand for cocaine and heroin.
“It’s economics, you have people who consume the product and so the law of economics kicks in. You have people across society, including professionals, consuming drugs and that’s an unfortunate fact of life.
“With that high level of demand every day will continue to be a battle. A lot of government’s around the world are realising that demand reduction is an important aspect of this battle.
Asked if he thought some drugs should be legalised he told Drogheda Life:
“That’s for Government to decide – we implement the law as it stands but you have to keep reinventing your approach if what you’re doing is not working.”
In relation to families who find themselves at the receiving end of demands from criminals over the drug debts of a son or daughter, the Chief Superintendent had a simple message – contact us, please contatc us!
“We need to know if a family is having a problem… We interact with families on a very regular basis, we can put a plan in place for them and introduce them to the agencies that provide family support” he said.
“We can meet families anywhere, sit down and listen to them in a very non-judgemental way. We have been able to help many families in this way and those interactions are never known about because we uphold a policy of total confidentiality.
“The message is, we’re here to help.”
