Concern at spike in violence on Tralee streets

Concerns were raised last night about a spate of violent incidents in Tralee, with long-serving town councillor Ted Fitzgerald claiming some people were now afraid to walk the streets.

Mr Fitzgerald, who raised the issue at a meeting of the Tralee Joint Policing Committee, also called on the local community to work with the gardaí to make the town safer.

“I’m very reluctant to give bad publicity to Tralee, but a number of incidents in the last few weeks can’t be ignored.”

He said some of the incidents occurred in Castle Street, in the town centre, and people were afraid walking home at night.

Mr Fitzgerald said the incidents had occurred early at night.

“I’m meeting people on the ground who are afraid of what is happening in the middle of the town in front of everybody, not in back alleys,” he said.

“If we leave this continue people won’t be able to walk around the town.”

He said he hoped local people could work with the gardaí in drawing up a security plan for trouble hotspots.

Superintendent James O’Connor told the meeting the number of serious assaults in Tralee had fallen, but there had been a 33% increase in minor assaults.

Statistics for the first three months of 2012 showed there were 10 incidents of assault causing harm, compared to 11 in the same period last year.

There had been 28 minor assaults in the first quarter, compared to 21 for the first quarter of 2011, with 219 public order cases, compared to 211 in the same period last year.

Supt O’Connor said two people had been charged in connection with one of the recent incidents, while a file was being prepared for the DPP arising from the second incident, a stabbing.