Child found four bags of heroin in Cork

Gardaí in the Mahon area of Cork have confirmed that a child recently found four bags of heroin which was then handed in to a local station. Garda Sergeant Fergus Twomey told Kelly O’Brien of the Evening Echo that the use of the drug is on the rise in the area and that one local resident has found eleven syringes in his back garden to date,

"Heroin is a scourge on not only this community but every community across the country. I go to the inquests at the coroner's court every Thursday and I've seen a huge upsurge in relation to the amount of deaths due to heroin use and polydrug use, which is multi-drug use or drugs combined with alcohol. It's still there, and more so than it was last year or the year before."

Sergeant Twomey told the paper that there has been a significant increase in drug detections in recent months,

"We're up ten percent year-on-year in relation to detections for dealing. It's still there, still on the radar. We're targeting it and have searched a number of houses over the last week around Blackrock and Mahon. It's not something that can be fixed in twenty-four hours, but it is something that we're strenuously trying to fix and if we get information about any anti-social behaviour or drug activity or drug dealing or selling, we're all over it and we don't tolerate it. But it's a matter of getting evidence. I can assure you it's not for a lack of trying on the part of the Gardaí. It is an ongoing operation."

Gardaí are encouraging members of the public to contact their local station with any information about drug use or anti-social behaviour in their area.  Join the conversation on Twitter @HerFamilydotie