Gun crime, rape increase but fall in some offences

Gun crime and the incidence of rape has continued to increase through the third quarter of the year despite an overall reduction in the number of headline, or serious, offences in the period, new figures from the Department of Justice reveal.

The provisional figures show a 40 per cent increase in the discharging of firearms, to 219 cases, for the first nine months of the year. Rapes of females have increased by 32 per cent, to 336 cases.

The Minister for Justice, Mr McDowell, said measures contained in the forthcoming Criminal Justice Bill 2004 would target gun crime. However, while he welcomed the overall decrease of 13 per cent in the category of sexual offences he expressed "grave concern" at the rise in the numbers of rapes.

"The nature of the relationship between the number of rapes reported and the number of actual incidents remains a complex one. For various reasons, victims may be unwilling, or may feel unable, to report these crimes to the gardaí."

Research by his Department into this area was still ongoing and when it was completed any "shortcomings in the law" would be addressed.

While gun crime had increased, mandatory sentencing for such offences would be introduced as part of the new legislation. A new offence of possession of a sawn-off shotgun would also be introduced. However, Mr McDowell said the number of murders committed in the first nine months of the year, at 28, represented a 20 per cent decrease on the same period last year.

"We are frequently told that . . . gardaí are losing the battle against professional murderers. Yet the figures tell us otherwise."

Prosecutions in this area would be aided in the future by provisions in the Criminal Justice Bill 2004, which would allow gardaí use witness statements made to them incriminating suspects even in cases where the witness had since decided not to take part in a trial.

As well as the increases in gun crime and rapes of females, other notable increases in the first nine months of the year included:

Aggravated sexual assaults, where a weapon or threat of a weapon was used, increased by 75 per cent, to 14 cases.

Cases of unlawful carnal knowledge increased by 26 per cent, to 77 cases.

Robbery of cash or goods in transit increased by 10 per cent, to 46 cases.

Overall, the total number of headline offences committed in the period dropped by 6 per cent, to 74,728 cases. False imprisonment decreased by 20 per cent, to 37 cases. Abduction fell by 26 per cent, to 28 cases. Possession of drugs for sale or supply fell by 14 per cent, to 1,568 cases.

Labour's spokesman on justice, Mr Joe Costello, said Ireland had become "a much more dangerous place to live" since the Government took office in 1997.