Group from Athlone among newest Garda graduates

Seven recruits from the Athlone area were among the latest group of more than 200 trainees who were sworn in as official members of An Garda Siochana late last week.

Friday's graduation ceremony at the Garda Training College in Templemore saw 207 new officers - 136 men and 71 women - being sworn in.

The new Garda graduates, from intake 261, were assigned to Garda divisions across the country, but almost none have been dispatched to stations in the Midlands.

None of the new officers are to be stationed in Westmeath, Roscommon or Longford, while one Garda who is being assigned to Tullamore is the only addition to the force in Offaly.

The Athlone-area graduates included Cameron Brill, who has been assigned to Drogheda, Faith O'Brien who has been assigned to Store Street in Dublin, and Oisin O'Reilly who has been assigned to Navan.

Other local graduates included Nicole Cunningham and Andrew Warde, both of whom were assigned to Bailieborough, and Barry Webb and Mark Beaumont, both of whom were assigned to Portlaoise.

The event last Friday brought the number of sworn Garda members to 14,825 which, the force said, is the "highest historical number of sworn members of An Garda Síochána in the history of the State".

A further 398 Garda recruits are currently in training at the Garda college, with the next intake due to enter the college on November 2.

Speaking at the ceremony in Templemore, Garda Commissioner Justin Kelly said the fact that the number of sworn officers is approaching 15,000 represents "an important milestone as we continue to strengthen our capacity to serve communities".

"This year, we expect to see close to 1,000 new Gardaí passing through the Garda college, reflecting the continued progress being made in recruitment and training," Commissioner Kelly said.

"There remains strong interest in a career in policing and we are working to build on that momentum in the years ahead."