Thousands of victims left waiting for justice as 34,000 bench warrants outstanding 

A bench warrant is issued by a judge when a person fails to turn up to court and allows gardaí to arrest the suspect on sight. Picture: Larry Cummins 

Thousands of victims of crime have been left waiting for justice because perpetrators failed to turn up to court and have not been tracked down in over a year.

More than 24,000 bench warrants have been outstanding for over a year, with the longest unfulfilled warrant dating back to 1968.