Andrews calls for drones to be issued to all Garda cars

Fianna Fáil MEP Barry Andrews has said that all Garda cars should be issued with drones.

The Fianna Fail MEP was speaking following incidents of joyriding, violence and criminal damage on Dublin’s northside.

“An Garda Síochána must be commended for their professionalism in apprehending these thugs who attacked homes and cars in several areas of north Dublin last night,” Andrews said.

“Burglary, joyriding and attacking residents’ homes with golf clubs, as happened to one home, must be met with the full weight of the criminal justice system. These youths are obviously past the stage of diversion programmes and, if convicted, must see jail time.”

Andrews noted that the Garda helicopter deployed last night provided “crucial support” to those on the ground and proved effective.

“However, such helicopters can take time to deploy, are not always on stand-by and cost over €1,000 an hour to deploy. The new Garda Drone Unit was set up earlier this year as drones can provide huge advantages over helicopters,” he said.

“They can deploy instantly, arriving at a scene much faster than ground units, putting the criminals on notice that they are being recorded and that units are on the way.”

“Drones give real-time video intelligence to assess incidents and can be equipped with thermal imaging and high-zoom lenses, providing extensive visibility and imagery as court evidence helping secure convictions.”

Andrews said, “as the AGSI recently called for, An Garda Síochána should include a drone in each of the over 1,000 marked cars in their fleet as soon as possible, starting in Dublin, along with the necessary training for all units.”