Sharp fall in crime rates in Galway City so far this year

Crime rates are falling right across the board in Galway City, except for thefts from shops and thefts from vehicles, new figures show.

An Garda Síochána’s latest official crime statistics reveal nearly every category of crime has fallen sharply in the city in the first three months of 2013.

Compared with January through March 2012, all the major headline crimes, including burglaries, drug offences, drink driving, public order offences and serious and minor assaults, have all fallen significantly, by between 10% and 50%.

A senior Garda hailed the policy of engagement with city off-licences and public houses on St Patrick’s Day as one of the reasons why alcohol fuelled crime was significantly down in Galway City and Salthill in the first quarter of this year.

Superintendent Marie Skehill praised off-licences for agreeing to remain closed until after 3pm on the day.

The number of public order offences in the city and Salthill Garda jurisdictions was 229, a reduction of 23% on the corresponding first three months of 2012.

There were 13 assaults causing harm, down 48%; and 39 minor assaults, also down by 41%.

The numbers of drink driving offences detected was down by 22.5%, to 31 incidents.

Drug offences also declined in the first three months of the year. Supt Skehill said there were 21 incidents of drugs for sale or supply, down by 9%, and 47 incidents of simple possession, down 11%.

Cannabis worth €31,950 was seized as part of these incidents and that was mainly due to an increase in the discovery of ‘grow houses’, said Supt Skehill.

Read more in today’s Connacht Sentinel