The drop in drug offences mean offences in the city are at their lowest recorded levels in 12 years
Figures obtained from the Central Statistics Office (CSO) and the All-Island Research Observatory at Maynooth University has revealed that controlled drug offences recorded at Waterford City Garda Station are at their lowest level since 2003.
Last year witnessed the continuation of a downward trend in recorded drug offences, following their peak in 2009, when 739 convictions were recorded in the city centre station.
Since then, numbers have dropped to 255 – a reduction of 61 per cent. Meanwhile, data available for first half of 2015 indicates further improvements, with 146 convictions recorded.
A Garda spokesperson stated that the figures “probably reflect socio-economic conditions,” where
“the recession meant that fewer people had the funds to consume these substances”.
Though welcomed, the spokesperson remained adamant that such a reduction “does not mean that we can rest on our laurels”.
While Waterford City’s figures reflect a nationwide reduction in recorded drug offences, Dungarvan appeared to buck this trend, were its Garda division experienced a 34 per cent increase in drug offences between 2012 and 2014.
