Takeaway owner says gangs of children are out of control
Laura Rea, owner of the Drimnagh Takeaway on Benbulbin Road in Drimnagh, south Dublin, said they phoned the local police station a couple of times every night because of the gangs.
She said the local community was deeply affected by the savage screwdriver attack on Marius Szwajkos and Pavel Kalite, both 29, at 6.45pm last Saturday.
“All the area is upset. Everybody is in shock.
“Everybody knows there is a problem with these gangs hanging around. It’s just nobody thought it could go that far.”
She said that since they purchased the business almost a year ago they have had constant problems with gangs.
“It’s very hard because you know people get annoyed and they don’t come near the chipper with them hanging around. They just annoy people, insult people, throw things, they even throw stuff at us in the chipper.”
Speaking on Newstalk’s Breakfast show, she said they have refused to serve some of the children. “The minute you refuse to serve them they just throw stuff at you. But see the problem is, it’s always roughly the same gangs.”
She said they phoned the gardaí every night at least two or three times, sometimes even more.
“Sometimes they come down but sometimes you are waiting an hour, an hour and a half. They drive by and kids move away for 10 minutes and then they are back again.
“Now there would be the group that move away and there would be the group that really do not care. They have no respect for police officers, for nobody.”
Ms Rea said they tried to talk to the parents of the children. “But you see the parents of these teenagers they really don’t care. You know there are children out there at 11pm, they are only 10 years of age.”
She said her family really did not want to have to sell up and move on. “We don’t know at the moment because my husband has been there for a year, but it’s not easy to move a family. And we have support from families there now, they have been very nice to us.
“This is the problem, in Drimnagh there are very, very nice families.
“The only thing is for these few people the whole area gets a bad name.”
A special bank account, the Kalita/Szwajkos Fund, has been set up: Account No: 14065184, AIB Bank, Irish Farm Centre, Naas Road, Dublin 12.
A vigil will take place on Benbulbin Road at 6.45pm tonight. A mass will take place at Mourne Road Church, Drimnagh, at 7.30pm on Monday. President Mary McAleese is due to attend.
