"Crime-free" start to 2021 in Athlone

The current lockdown resulted in "the quietest New Year's ever" for the Gardai in Athlone, who didn't make a single arrest on the last night of 2020.

"It was the quietest New Year's we've ever had. There was literally no crime, which was startling, even with Covid," said Sergeant Andrew Haran of Athlone Garda Station.

"We didn't have one person arrested, and didn't have any crime reported to us during the whole night of New Year's."

Speaking to the Westmeath Independent on Monday afternoon, Sergeant Haran said the opening days of the year continued to be calm from a policing perspective, with no burglaries and very little crime in general.

It was a similar picture in South Roscommon, according to Sergeant Mick Walsh of Roscommon Garda Station, who said it had been particularly quiet across the district for the previous week and a half.

Meanwhile, a group of around 20 people from an African religious group held a gathering outside Athlone Garda Station last Saturday following the death of George Nkencho, a 27-year-old man who was shot dead by a Garda during an incident in Clonee on December 30.

The incident sparked protests, particularly in Dublin, and is the subject of a Garda Síochána Ombudsman Commission (GSOC) investigation.

"A number of people from a Christian church asked us if they could gather outside the station, and they were fully welcome from a Garda perspective," said Sergeant Haran.

"We managed traffic to keep them safe for the short time they were here, which was under an hour. They said a few prayers and sang a few songs outside the station. They linked in with us, and we welcomed their presence here," he added.