Three prisoners remain in serious condition in intensive care following suspected drug overdoses in Portlaoise Prison earlier this week.
Another two prisoners are being kept in hospital for observation but are expected to be discharged soon. A further six prisoners who were initially hospitalised on Tuesday following suspected overdoses were discharged back into Irish Prison Service (IPS) custody on Wednesday.
It is believed the prisoners suffered adverse health effects after consuming a powdered substance which had recently been smuggled into the high-security prison.
All the affected prisoners were being housed on C Wing which is used to accommodate gangland criminals, including members of the Kinahan organised crime group.
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A portion of the batch believed to have been consumed by the prisoners has been located and seized by prison officials, who have sent it for testing. The results of these tests are still pending, but officials believe the substance likely contained a highly potent synthetic opioid such as nitazene.
Nitazene, which is many times stronger than heroin, was responsible for the fatal overdose of a prisoner in Mountjoy Prison last month. It has caused dozens of overdoses in the wider community since first appearing in Ireland a year ago.
IPS officials are increasingly concerned about the presence of nitazene in prisons and are stepping up educational programmes about the dangers of the substance. They are also acquiring additional doses of naloxone, an injectable medication which can immediately reverse the effects of an overdose.
Prison sources said prisoners will not face sanction if they hand over illicit substances they have concerns about in their possession.
It is understood the three prisoners in intensive care are responding to treatment. The health of other prisoners in Portlaoise is being closely monitored, officials said.
One of the prisoners affected is serving a life sentence for a gangland killing that claimed the life of a man heavily involved in the importation of drugs into the Republic on behalf of Dublin crime gangs.
It appears the prisoners believed the drug they were consuming was spice, a synthetic cannabinoid.
The Prison Officers Association (POA) said this week’s incident was almost inevitable, given current overcrowding.
“Over the years and at several annual conferences, we have raised the issue of overcrowding and illegal smuggling of drugs into our prisons. Despite the best efforts of our members on the ground, no significant action has been taken by the authorities to address the drugs issue in our prisons,” said deputy general secretary Gabriel Keaveny.
“What has regrettably now occurred in Portlaoise Prison was somewhat inevitable.”
Mr Keaveny said drones are being used almost daily to deliver drugs, mobile phones and weapons to prisons. “And we have consistently raised the overcrowding issue, which of course is central to all other issues which emerge in our prisons.
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“The Minister and the prison authorities need to see this incident in Portlaoise as an inevitable consequence of inaction over the years. The chronic issues impacting on our prison system must be addressed or we will be confronted with significant crisis events in the very near future.”
There are more than 5,000 prisoners in custody, a record amount, and bed capacity is at 112 per cent. Some 80 per cent of prisoners have substance abuse issues.
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