It is not the practice for Ministers for Justice to make statements to the House about specific crimes or individual Garda investigations except in singular instances where the circumstances are so exceptional that such a course is deemed appropriate. All I propose to say about the particular incident referred to in the question is that it is the subject of an on-going Garda investigation.
On the more general issue raised by the Deputy, I fully appreciate the concerns of local residents. The Garda authorities have informed me that a number of measures have been taken to deal with crime in Clondalkin. These include close liaison between local gardaí and neighbourhood watch representatives, the deployment of special patrols in the area and the assignment of two members from Ronanstown station to community policing duties in the locality. I am informed by the Garda authorities that they intend to assign additional members to community policing duties in the area as soon as circumstances permit. They have also informed me that they are continuing to monitor the situation closely and will take any further appropriate measures that may be necessary to deal with the problem.
