A serving member of the Gardai has described the 'failure within the system' of properly policing Dublin's O'Connell Street.
He says 'repeat offenders' are released back into the area 90 minutes after being arrested for a crime.
The Department of Justice released figures this week of over 3,000 arrests and 6,000 charges given to offenders on O'Connell Street.
Today FM news spoke to a Garda member, who did not want to be named, who spent a number of years patrolling the area.
He told us there's a 'clear misunderstanding' between these figures and what happens on the ground.
He says crimes such as theft, robbery and burglary are being committed to fund drug addictions in the area.
He adds that repeat offenders are 'constantly' being given bail, and can be arrested three or four times a week, or as much as 'twice in one day'.
He knows of repeat offenders being released on bail and committing 'violent assaults' when they're out.
He says normal patrol Garda members are tasked with policing serious crimes, and they're one of the only forces in the world to do so.
