In the early hours of one morning in March, 2024, a botched drug-smuggling operation came to an end off the coast of West Cork. After 48 hours at sea, a speedboat returned to Tragumna, bringing a sense of desperation from those on board.
A bid to offload cocaine from a cargo ship en route from South America had failed.
The incident is now another tale in the decades-old fascination drug smugglers have for West Cork’s expansive, jagged coastline.
Following our focus on courts in June, the ‘Irish Examiner’ is exploring crime data from garda stations in our series in print and online here.
Law enforcement agencies have long been aware that the area is on the radar of drug cartels, but despite its problems with international crime gangs, West Cork remains the area of Co Cork with the lowest crime rates.
The Central Statistics Office has revealed that crime in West Cork is much less of an issue than in Cork City, and other parts of the county. Garda sources point to Mallow in the North as being the busiest garda station area in the county, followed closely by Midleton in the East. Crime figures show Mallow as having the highest reported crime level last year, with 792 recorded incidents.
These included 224 thefts and 135 public order incidents, as well as 130 incidents which fell under the category of attempts/threats to murder, assaults, harassments, and related offences.
Reported Crimes by Garda Station in 2024
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Cork North / West Divisions
Midleton was second highest in the county, with 613 in total, again thefts and public order were the most reported offences.
Both Mallow and Midleton stations ranked incidents under the category of attempts, threats to murder, assaults, harassments, and related offences as the third highest offence type.
The population covered by Mallow Garda Station stands at 18,058, making it the second largest population per garda station in Co Cork. Midleton station provides a service to a population of 18,828.
Garda sources say there are a number of reasons why the two stations are the busiest outside of Cork City.
“There is a big difference between the east and the West of the county and the North-West. Mallow is the busiest town, followed by Midleton. It’s the road network, it’s population as well,” the garda source said.
“Mallow and Midleton also have train stations, buses. Where they are, there are a lot of people going to Limerick or going to the South-East.
“Before, Fermoy was always a bit of a hotspot but with the motorway now, there isn’t as much in that area because it is bypassed. By and large, it is population and the transient nature of them.”
In stark contrast to other areas, the top crime reported to stations in West Cork was not theft.
Just two of the seven West Cork garda stations have theft as the highest reported offence — Bandon with 75 such offences and Kinsale with 48.
Bantry, Skibbereen, and Macroom stations handled more public order incidents than thefts, while Dunmanway and Clonakilty’s most recorded crimes fell under the category of attempts/threats to murder, assaults, harassments, and related offences.
This was similar for Kanturk in the North of the county, along with Cobh and Youghal.
Youghal was second highest in the county for such incidents, behind Mallow’s 130 incidents with 104.
In the east of the county, thefts were the most commonly reported crimes in Carrigtwohill, Fermoy, Mitchelstown, and Midleton, while further north-west, Mallow and Charleville’s statistics tell a similar story.
Despite high-profile stories of rural burglaries in different parts of the country over recent years, and the subsequent public fear, burglary and related offences rank among the least reported crimes in both Cork city and county.
While there have been some burglaries reported in recent months in areas close to turn offs from the Cork-Dublin motorway, gardaí say burglaries are not a widespread issue in Cork for now.
Indeed, in each garda station across the urban and rural divide, burglary fell outside the top five most reported crimes in all of the station areas bar one — Passage West in the Cork City division, which received five such reports.
In each station outside of the Cork City division, burglary rates were below the national average — with Bandon 90% below, followed by Cobh at 80% below.
In respect of controlled drug offences, Mallow was 66% above the national average, followed by Fermoy at 53%, and Macroom at 50%.
West Cork has become synonymous with high-profile incidents such as the botched Tragumna drug operation, a connection to the MV Matthew drug seizure, and the murder in 1996 of French filmmaker Sophie Toscan du Plantier, but gardaí say the reality is very different on the ground.
The relationship between the community and gardaí is strong in West Cork, which has borne fruit for the big garda operations.
“What we learned about the coastal areas is that local connection is massive [for policing],” a garda source said.
“The MV Matthew [operation] and the other one [Tragumna] took huge resources.
“It is great to get them but then there is a big follow up, with members grounded trying to follow up evidence like satellite and mobile phones, and you are also following up with enquires with Interpol and the providence of the ships and where they came from. They are labour-intensive operations.”
Garda resources is an issue in Cork county as well as every other division in the country. The number of gardaí of all ranks in the expansive division stood at 616 in May. This is down significantly from 659 in December 2020.
Closer analysis of the stations in the county show that there were eight stations across the county which were without a garda — Drimoleague, Durrus, Glengarriff, Baltimore, Drinagh, Kilworth, Coachford, and Tarelton. All bar Kilworth are west of Cork City. Weekly clinics are held at those which currently are without gardaí.
Meanwhile, there are also 19 one-garda stations across the widespread division, including Whitegate, Killeagh, Cloyne, Newmarket, Liscarroll, Milford, Boherbue, Ballyvourney, Kildorrery, Ballynoe, Rosscarbery, Kealkill, and Innishannon.
West Cork community activist Con McCarthy was among a group of people who came together in 2011 to fight against closures of stations, particularly in West Cork, including in his own local area of Kilbrittain and Ballinspittle. Both stations are staffed by one garda.
Mr McCarthy says people have moved on from the fears and concerns that came with the closure of stations — almost 140 across the country — during the recession years.
But he said that some stations are only open for a “limited number of hours a week”, which he says is a concern.
“They are open in name but they are a long way from being fully open,” he said.
“For linking in with a community, it is very hard to replace having a garda on the ground, in terms of nipping issues in the bud. He or she would have a feel for what is going on locally.”
Independent Ireland leader and Cork South-West TD Michael Collins also fought the closure of garda stations in West Cork, prior to becoming an elected representative.
He points to his locality as an example where community policing is working but believes it is something that should be emulated in other rural areas.
“We are very lucky in some communities to have a local garda, like we do in Ballydehob,” said Mr Collins. “That garda is living in Ballydehob, and is working in Schull, Ballydehob, and Goleen so he knows when something is going on.”
He commended gardaí for achievements such as major coastal drug seizures.
“They are stretched to the limit. Garda numbers have to be increased, especially along the coastline, because that coastline is being used to traffic drugs.”
With a new group of gardaí being attested later this month, many communities across the country will be hoping local vacancies can be filled with an allocation of the newest recruits.
Taoiseach Micheál Martin has said that 20 of the newly attested gardaí will be allocated to Cork stations.
Con McCarthy believes a major strength of communities in rural areas is the establishment of community alert groups, to look out for suspicious activities.
Fine Gael senator Eileen Lynch, from Aghabullogue, says that, nowadays, people know less about their neighbours in rural areas, and there is less of a bond within local communities.
She is strong in her support for communities working together to help combat crime, and praises the work of Muintir na Tíre and community alert groups in helping to strengthen ties.
There were a number of incidents in recent months where cars were stolen from outside homes in West Cork, which is worrying for everyone, but particularly for elderly people living alone.
“They are at higher risk than a younger person, couples or a family living together,” Ms Lynch said.
“The idea of community alert or Muintir na Tíre bringing back that community feeling is very welcome.”
In 2019, the value of communities coming together in the fight against rural crime was endorsed with the establishment of the national rural safety forum.
The forum comprises of organisations including the Irish Farmers Association, Macra na Feirme, AgriKids, and Muintir na Tíre, as well as the Department of Justice and gardaí.
A new rural safety plan is currently being drawn up to bring communities and rural groups together to help tackle crimes such as burglary, crimes against animals, and heritage crime.
It is expected to be published later this year.
There are five pillars to the rural safety plan: community safety, burglary and theft, roads policing, animal crime, and heritage crime.
According to the Department of Justice, the new Policing Security and Community Safety Act will see the establishment of local community safety partnerships across the country.
“Each newly established local community safety partnership will be required to develop and implement its own tailored community safety plan,” the department said in a statement.
“This will ensure a strategic approach, so that issues can be directly addressed by service providers in partnership with the community. The national rural safety forum will meet quarterly during 2025 to continue its work to develop Ireland’s second national rural safety plan.”
