LANDLORDS of properties rented to students in Casteltroy, Limerick, where house parties have come under the spotlight during the COVID-19 pandemic, and who may be also be using illegal waste providers, are to be targeted in a joint operation coordinated by Limerick City and County Council and Gardai.
It comes following a student street party in the College Court estate near the University of Limerick, last Tuesday night.
Gardai issued 56 fixed charge notices on the night, and five people were arrsted for alleged public order and drugs offences.
Pat Daly, chief executive of the Council, told a meeting of the city and county’s Joint Policing Committe today: “I think if we keep on the ground and keep hitting them at various points – from everything from estate management, to bins, litter inspection services, it will have an impact.”
“It’s not just the students, there are people who have just taken houses there and have run amuck. We are also going to try and tackle the landlords.”
Mr Daly said “many of them are private and not registered, so we have to see how we can tackle that”.
“We are very conscious of it and hopefully swift action will yield results,” he added.
Head of the Limerick Garda Division, Chief Superintendent Gerry Roche, told the meeting gardai had issued “a total of 972 fixed charge notices” including “over 350, in the Castletroy and College Court area”.
Gardai recovered around €21,000 worth of cocaine last Tuesday night in college court, he said.
“All neccessary resources are being assigned to ensure the objectives of the operation are achieved,” he added.
This “high visibility” response includes mobile patrols by the Mountain Bike Unit, Crime Unit, Divisional Drugs Unit, Roads Policing Unit, and Dog Unit.
Chief Roche said aside from last Tuesday’s street party, five people had received “ssubstainal fines’ for organising house parties in the area; 16 were fined for attending the parties, and more were fined for “being outside of their area”.
Between January and February, gardai locally issued 319 fixed charge notices on people hosting, organising, and travelling to house parties.
“Some of the people we have caught for drugs have travelled from other counties. There is an awful lot of acivitity going on.”
Chief Roche praised the “majority” of UL students who have adhered to covid-19 guidelines, “I have to be fair to the students – there is 17,000 students out there and you are talking here about a cohort of people – maybe 350 who have had fines, but maybe 700 people who are not complying with the FCNs (fixed charge notices) or with covid regulations.”
UL are funding overtime for six gardai to patrol off campus estates.
Chief Roche said: “We are also working with the council in relation to what’s going on out there, and they have issued fines and summonses and they’re going to bring prosecutions for litter, outside any of these houses that they come upon.”
He said UL’s private on-campus security team “cannot” patrol off-campus estates, “they have no powers outside of there and we wouldn’t ask them to, because they may put themselves in danger”.