Thurles Information

Templemore Garda Training College

Current Garda strength will now continue to diminish, until at least the summer of 2015, because of a failure to financially approve the first batch of Garda recruits to Templemore, since the moratorium on recruitment was introduced by the then Government five years ago in 2009.

In early December 2013, former Minister for Justice Allan Shatter and Tipperary TD Noel Coonan had given a commitment, both promising that an initial fresh intake of recruits, on a rolling basis, would enter the gates of the Garda College in Templemore, by the end of this month.

This deadline will not now be met as the resumption of recruitment has not, to date at least, been financially approved. The aim of the Government had been to maintain the force’s strength at 13,000, a figure which had been described as “bottom line” by former Garda Commissioner Martin Callinan, latter who was forced to resign earlier this year.

It had been promised that the initial 100 successful recruits, later chosen from some 25,000 applications, would be joined by two similar batches to be introduced at three-monthly intervals between now and early in 2015. These new successful recruits were informed that they would be given time to deliver one month’s notice to all current employers, which means that if financial approval was granted this week no new recruits would be in place before September 2014 at the very earliest.

Garda strength has already shrunk to around 12,930 and will fall significantly more before fully qualified recruits are on the streets for the first time, as part of their overall two-year training and assessment programme.

A 45-year-old woman was arrested this afternoon in connection with the ongoing investigations into the murder of Mr Bobby Ryan in West Tipperary in 2011.

The body of Mr Ryan, latter aged 52, was found in a disused slurry tank at the rear of a farm house at Fawnagowan, Tipperary on April 30th of last year. Mr Ryan had been reported missing since June 3rd 2011, before being discovered almost two years later after his disappearance.

Following the completion of a post-mortem examination at Waterford Regional Hospital by the Deputy State Pathologist Dr Khalid Jabbar, Gardaí officially upgraded their inquiries into Mr Ryan’s death, to that of a murder investigation.

It is understood that Mr Ryan suffered a horrific beating which led to his death and because of the condition of his located remains identification was necessary using  dental records and DNA comparisons from family members.

Mr Ryan during his lifetime had worked as a lorry driver and also as a part-time Disc Jockey at weekends and was well known across South Tipperary by the stage-name, “Mr Moonlight.”

The woman is understood to be detained currently under the provisions of Section 30 of the Offences Against the State Act at Tipperary town Garda Station.

Tipperary Gardaí have today arrested a 39 year old man following a recent spate of incidents; which involved a confidence trickster targeting elderly women, latter residing alone both here in Thurles and other parts of the county; including Cashel, Clonmel and Kilsheelan.

Gardaí investigating these thefts, this morning arrested a male suspect known to them, following the search of a rural location in South Tipperary. Subject to questioning Gardaí state that if necessary the arrested man may be made the subject of a police line-out.

Thefts of cash and jewellery had been reported in recent weeks, where a confidence trickster had visited private homes, masquerading as a plain clothes Garda; supposedly checking home security and who had also passed himself off as an official from Irish Water; checking water pressure, thus gaining the confidence of his intended victims.

The man is currently being held at Thurles Garda Station, Slievenamon Road, Thurles, under Section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act, where he can be held for up to 24 hours for questioning.