A major crackdown by gardai on drug-dealing in the midlands has led to the arrest and conviction of members of one of the main gangs in the Athlone area.
Last week a 16-year-old Athlone schoolgirl was put on probation for two years for possession of 139 bags of heroin for sale or supply.
Another member of the gang, her former boyfriend, was jailed for 18 months in March. Their apprehension was the work of the Garda drugs squad set up in the Westmeath-Longford Garda division a year ago.
Insp Martin Maguire of Athlone station said that while he was very happy with the success of the divisional drugs unit's work, there was no room for complacency. "The problem with drugs is that when you take out somebody there always seems to be somebody else to fill their shoes. We have to always be vigilant," he said.
There was a heroin problem in Athlone, "albeit small in comparison to Dublin". There were a number of locals who were addicts, which was worrying, he said. However, heroin was not a problem in Longford or Mullingar.
He confirmed that the local drugs squad had had some major successes. They had been responsible for seizures of thousands of pounds worth of cannabis and ecstasy throughout the region over the past year. A number of arrests were made and prosecutions are pending.
"Their work has led to a decrease in the level of drugs available, and some of the big players have been taken out," Insp Maguire said.
Mr John Madden, an outreach worker and counsellor attached to the Connect 2000 drugs project in Athlone, said heroin was an issue in the town but it was difficult to pinpoint the exact extent of the problem. He said that despite the crackdown by gardai, heroin was still available in Athlone.
A member of the Athlone Drugs Awareness Group, Ms Liz Fletcher, said gardai were doing a very good job, and it was getting harder for people to access drugs in the area. Her group works to create awareness of the hazards of drug-taking and thereby reduce demand for drugs.
The 16-year-old Athlone schoolgirl who was put on probation last week had been arrested in Longford, on her way from Sligo to Athlone. She had 139 bags of heroin and was part of a gang forced to leave Athlone because of the crackdown there by Garda drugs officers, it was stated at her trial at Sligo Circuit Court. The gang had relocated to Sligo, from where they continued their operation.
Sgt James Delaney, who is in charge of the Longford-Westmeath Divisional Drugs Unit, told the court that since the break-up of the gang's operation, the level of heroin-dealing in Athlone had dropped significantly.
The schoolgirl, who wasn't a drug-user herself, had got into heroin-dealing purely for profit and was making £20 on every deal she sold in Athlone. She would pick up the drugs in Sligo and take them to Athlone.
In her statement she said she would hide the heroin in lots of 10 deals around Athlone in various places including walls. Judge Anthony Kennedy said that, but for her age, she would have been locked up.