TV series shines light on how gardaí fight to hold back gangs
‘Kids look at these people as role models’
CHILDREN who have been sucked into criminal gangs by the lure of expensive clothes and designer runners are shown running rampant in an explosive documentary with unprecedented access to the gardaí.
The Guards: Inside The K follows officers in the K district covering Blanchardstown,
Finglas and Cabra as they deal with our most hardened criminal gangs.
Detective Sergeant Damien Mangan, from Finglas Garda station, said: ‘The Mr Flashy gang, they’re young individuals and they have a lot of young members. I think their tag is the Gucci gang with Mr Flashy being part of that. I think that has added to the wont of the young individuals in the community to look at these people as role models.’
Det Sgt Mangan was previously in community policing and told how gardaí are trying hard to divert children away from these gangs before it is too late.
‘You are working with the kids in the schools a lot and you’re trying to get it across that they realise there is something outside of the madness that is on their doorstep at times and there are other avenues they can go down and clubs they can join other than the Gucci gang etc,’ he said.
‘A lot of these people are growing up and don’t have a huge amount and when they are being offered it for doing very little, it gets them in the door and once they’re in they’re sucked in, they’re part of it and it’s very hard to get out.’
Superintendent Liam Carolan, who leads the Garda district featured in the ground-breaking five-part documentary, told how vulnerable children are being sucked into gangs because they want ‘the best’ of everything. Once involved it is next to impossible for them to get out again.
‘The young lads get sucked into that life and it’s very important that we have a number of youth diversion projects and we try and get the at-risk kids in early... to show them that there is an alternative path to this criminality,’ he said.
There are five youth diversion projects active across the K district with a lot of success, but juveniles in the area are determined to get involved in gangs no matter what. ‘There are huge success rates with the juvenile liaison programme where people do not reoffend again. There are a certain number it doesn’t work whatever you say,’ said Supt Carolan.
The Guards: Inside The K will start on Virgin Media One at 9pm on Wednesday. It features stark footage of gardaí dealing with some of the worst aspects of our society, including terrifying footage of erratic teenagers shooting indiscriminately, balaclava-clad children setting a house alight with people inside and members of a criminal gang being driven into a ditch on their way to carry out of murder.
It also reveals the horrific abuse gardaí are subjected to in their daily battle to keep communities safe around the country.