ANALYSIS:Five-year crime trend statistics reveal some unlikely results, writes CONOR LALLY
PERHAPS THE most unexpected feature of the Central Statistics Office’s analysis of five-year crime trends is the emergence of parts of affluent south Dublin as a crime black spot for some offences.
The rate of murder and manslaughter in south Dublin and Limerick is almost three times the national average. Parts of south Dublin are also revealed as the worst hit by burglary in the State.
The Garda’s Limerick division has the highest rate of homicide offences – manslaughters, murders and infanticides – per capita of population, at 3.5 offences per 100,000 people in 2008. Much of this can be attributed to the gangland feud in the city, which has been ongoing for a decade.
Gun crime fell last year by a higher rate in Limerick than anywhere else in the city, and many of the feuding criminals have been convicted and jailed for serious offences.
However, there is still a small but highly active group of criminals there bent on shooting their rivals.
The Garda’s south central division in Dublin had only a marginally lower rate of homicide in 2008 than Limerick, with 3.4 offences per 100,000 people. The State average in that year was 1.2 offences per 100,000.
The Dublin south central division covers the areas policed by Garda stations in Donnybrook, Harcourt Terrace, Irishtown, Kevin Street, Kilmainham and Pearse Street.
The homicides in south Dublin include a number of killings carried out as part of a gangland feud between criminals based in Crumlin and Drimnagh, but whose activities stretch just beyond those suburbs.
This gang dispute has also been dragging on for a decade. While many of the key criminals are in prison or dead, their associates are continuing with gun violence.
Neither Minister for Justice Dermot Ahern nor Garda headquarters made any comment on the CSO statistics released yesterday.
As well as being a homicide black spot, the Dublin south central division had the highest number of burglaries in the State in 2008, at 1,335 per 100,000 people.
The national average was 541 burglaries per 100,000 people.
The CSO does not offer any commentary as to why particular areas are worst affected by some crime types. However, it can reasonably be assumed that the concentration of wealth in parts of south Dublin makes it a favoured target area for burglars looking for high-value items.
Drug crime is much higher in Dublin than anywhere else in the State, with 832 offences per 100,000 people in 2008 compared to the national average of 529 cases per 100,000.
Within the Dublin area, it is the centre of the city – where most night life is situated – where the drugs problem is worst.
For example, the Dublin north central division saw 1,501 drugs offences per 100,000 people in 2008, while Dublin south central saw 1,280 offences per 100,000. Both areas combined cover all of Dublin’s city centre.
The Cork city Garda division recorded the next highest rate of drug crime in 2008, with 633 offences per 100,000.
Dublin west was the gun crime capital of the State in 2008, with 41 firearms offences – either possession or discharge of a firearm – per 100,000 people. Limerick city was next, with 37 offences per 100,000.
However, gun crime fell by 20 per cent in west Dublin in 2008 and by one third in Limerick. These were the largest falls of anywhere in the country.
The highest rate of drink- driving in the Republic was recorded in the Garda’s Cavan- Monaghan division, at 736 offences per 100,000 people. The lowest rate was in the Garda’s Dublin eastern division, at 183 offences per 100,000 people.
The national average for drink-driving in 2008 was 406 offences per 100,000 people.
The rate of vehicle theft is by far the worst in Dublin. The averaged of 596 offences per 100,000 people in 2008 was at least twice as high as in any other area.