Knife seizures have continued to increase this year despite the Covid-19 lockdown, with one in six knives seized by gardaí taken from children aged 12 to 17 years. Overall, knife seizures increased by 13 per cent, to 1,214 seizures, in the first half of this year, according to data obtained by The Irish Times from the Garda. There were 2,145 knives seized by gardaí across the State last year, up 33 per cent on 2017. This follows a 20 per cent drop in knife seizures in Co Clare between 2017 and 2019; down to 28 from 35. In the first six months of this year 134 knives were seized there, a 28 per cent increase this year based on six-month trends.

Source: The Irish Times November 16, 2020 03:00 UTC