Open drug use will 'surge' if laws changed, claims top garda
Collins Assistant Gareth Justin And Photos Serious Picture: Chaney/ Organised Crime Kelly, Missioner,
Open drug use will “surge” if Ireland decides to liberalise its laws, the Garda’s top drug officer has warned.
Assistant Commissioner Justin Kelly said the Citizens’ Assembly on Drug Use — which is examining Irish drug laws and policies — should understand the “full picture” of the consequences of decriminalising or legalising drug use or supply.
AC Kelly, head of Organised and Serious Crime, directs all the major national serious crime and gangland units, including the Garda National Drugs and Organised Crime Bureau (DOCB).
In an interview with the , he also said:
- South American cartels are sitting on “huge stockpiles” of cocaine;
- There appears to be an “insatiable appetite” for cocaine in Ireland;
- International traffickers are now using drones to transport cocaine off vessels and land them in destination countries;
- Ireland has been involved in the seizure of 4.9 tonnes of cocaine this year under EU-coordinated operations;
- Cash seizures connected with cocaine are often “nice crisp notes” while those connected with heroin are often “dirty and grubby” and with lower denominations;
- DOCB is focusing on emerging organised crime groups (OCGs), including Albanian gangs;
- While the Kinahan cartel is “substantially degraded”, they are still operating, here and abroad — but he was “confident” of bringing its leaders to justice;
- DOCB is ready to act for any potential reignition of the Kinahan-Hutch feud with the release of many Kinahan members and any possibility that the Hutch gang will seek revenge;
- 81 associates of the Kinahan cartel have been convicted in the courts, with 15 convictions of Hutch gang members.
AC Kelly is due to address the next session of the Citizens’ Assembly on Drug Use (CAD), which has heard detailed accounts of the human impact on people — both problematic users and recreational users — from current laws criminalising the possession of drugs.
A range of voluntary and community groups, as well as advocates, have called for decriminalisation and, in some cases, legalisation.
A number of EU countries, including Malta and Germany, have, or are beginning to, introduce legalisation measures relating to cannabis.
The so-called Portuguese model — where possession is an “administrative” rather than a criminal offence and where users are diverted to a health intervention — is being examined by the CAD and has previously been recommended by the Oireachtas justice committee.
AC Kelly visited Portugal last month and has previously visited North America and spoken to relevant health and police officers.
“Portugal has been touted by lots of people as being the panacea for all problems, but it hasn’t been used in any other country,” he said. “Despite dozens of delegations that have visited Portugal, no other country has introduced the Portuguese model.”
He also claimed that “no detailed empirical studies” have been done about it.
From talking to police in North America, he said they report “huge problems” with legalisation, including their ability to respond to public drug usage in residential, business, and tourist areas.
“It’s really important that people understand that if you change the current system, there are risks, wider societal risks," he said.
“So, at the moment, people are talking about open use of drugs in certain parts of Dublin, but if you make changes around decriminalisation, the experience from other countries is you’re going to see a surge in open drug use.
"In some countries they have seen an increase in overdoses and crime.”
He said organised crime benefits from decriminalisation as they still control supply and that organised crime continues in legalisation models, saying they will cut prices and increase purity and sustain an underground market.