A man has been arrested after gardai searched a house in the city and recovered a quantity of drugs this morning.
Armed Gardai as well as the Garda Dog Unit supported members of the Limerick Garda Divisional Drugs Unit in a planned raid on the house in St Mary’s Park, after gardai had secured a warrant from Limerick District Court.
The local authority housing estate was earmarked for Regeneration 14 years ago, however significantly high levels of deprivation remain and the area continues to be blighted by drug dealing.
The estate is a stronghold for the Keane OCG (Organised Crime Gang), who along with their associates the Collopy OCG, have been supplying drugs across Limerick and the wider mid west region for the past two decades.
A garda spokesman confirmed that Gardaí attached to the Division’s Headquarters at Henry Street “have arrested one man and seized a quantity of drugs during a search operation in St Mary’s Park, Limerick this morning, Tuesday 28th September 2021”.
“The search operation was conducted under warrant by the Limerick Divisional Drug Unit, Armed Support Unit and Dog Unit. During the course of the search, suspected cocaine, heroin and cannabis were seized with an estimated street value totaling €6,600.”
“Items of drug paraphernalia were also seized. The drugs will now be sent for analysis.”
“A male, aged in his 20s, was arrested at the scene and taken to Henry Street Garda Station where he is currently detained under Section 2 of the Criminal Justice (Drug Trafficking) Act, 1996.”
Gardai said their “investigations are ongoing”.
Gardai have been more visible in the estate for several months, conducting checkpoints in and out of the island estate that runs alongside the River Shannon.
A joint task force involving Gardai and Limerick City and County Council was established last March to tackle drug dealing and anti-social behaviour in St Mary’s Park.
Gardai have targeted properties several times this year and last March they seized over €50,000 worth of cash and drugs.
Local Sinn Fein Councillor, John Costelloe, said drugs are often stored in local derelict houses.
He explained that the local drugs cartel often purchase homes in the area for significantly less than what the properties are worth and use the houses as ”drugs supermarkets”.
Cllr Costelloe said “crack cocaine” is freely available from the local “Cabal”.
“These places are like sweet-shops, you can get what you like, and people are living in fear all of the time, it’s horrendous.”
The head of the Limerick Garda Division, Chief Superintendent Gerry Roche, has said that gardai are “100% focused on stopping drug dealing in all parts of Limerick, and unfortunately some of the derelict buildings in the St Mary’s Park area have attracted drug use and we intend on stamping this out”.
Extra garda patrols have been embedded in the estate in recent months to try to keep a lid on the activities of those involved in the sale and supply of drugs.
A number of houses in the area have been retrofitted with steel doors to try to delay gardai entering the properties during planned drug raids.
“The good people of St Mary’s Park do not deserve this invidious drug dealing in their community which is due to a small group bringing the entire area down. I would urge the gardai and the Council to continue to do all they can to tackle this,” Cllr Costelloe said.
Councillor Costelloe said he has asked the Council to purchase two private homes in the estate that are currently on the market to prevent the drug dealers attempting to make demands for the homes
