Gardaí are investigating an attack on a man on Talbot Street in Dublin which left a man requiring treatment in hospital.
The victim, aged in his 30s, suffered non life-threatening injuries and is expected to make a full recovery.
Gardaí from Store Street are investigating the assault, which occurred on Talbot Street at about 7.30pm on Wednesday. A technical examination has been carried out at the scene and gardaí appealed to any witnesses to come forward.
The incident is the latest in a series of recent high-profile attacks in inner city Dublin, a trend which prompted Minister for Justice Helen McEntee to make an additional €10 million available for Garda overtime in the city to year end.
It is hoped the additional overtime will increase Garda numbers in the city pending growth in the size of the wider force.
While Garda numbers were at a record high of 14,750 in March 2020, they have fallen to just below 14,000 in recent months as a result of the Garda College in Templemore, Co Tipperary being closed during the Covid-19 pandemic. The Government and Garda headquarters have said that with full recruitment having recommenced, the number of gardaí would soon stabilise and then begin to increase.
However, the Garda and Government remain under pressure about perceptions of increased violence in central Dublin, with concern for public safety fuelled by recent assaults, especially on visitors to the city.
Stephen Termini (57), an American tourist, suffered serious head injuries in an assault on Talbot Street last month. He remains in Dublin’s Beaumont Hospital. A number of teenage boys have been charged in relation to the alleged group attack and remain before the courts.
Three UK tourists were injured in a street attack in Temple Bar last Friday night, which it is alleged was carried out by a number of young male assailants.
The victims, aged in their 20s, were taken to St James’s Hospital after the incident on Fownes Street Upper at about 10pm. The Garda inquiry into the incident is ongoing and a 17-year-boy has been arrested and charged. Other suspects are still under investigation.
In June, Ukrainian actor Oleksandr Hrekov (23) was violently attacked while in Dublin to appear in The Abbey Theatre. He was targeted by a gang at Eden Quay and sustained serious facial injuries. It appears he was wounded in the face with a broken glass, and bitten, by a group who attacked him while trying to steal his cigarettes.
