Prison officers to vent frustration at conference

FRUSTRATED prison officers will today raise the ongoing concerns about overcrowding, violent inmates and the scourge of drugs in Irish jails at their annual conference.

President Gabriel Keaveney, of the Prison Officers Association, will tell delegates that one wing in Castlerea prison, outside Roscommon, is holding nearly double the capacity of inmates.

The unit has a capacity for 35 prisoners but is currently catering for 60 inmates, according to prison guards.