Children as young as 10 dealing drugs in Dublin - study
Children as young as 10 are dealing drugs in a large Dublin suburb, a new study has found.
When it comes to holding drugs, the age drops even lower, with children as young as eight working as a “runner”.
Research conducted annually over the last three years by the Blanchardstown Local Drug and Alcohol Task Force uses a range of data sources for its work. Its 118-page 2018 trend analysis said there was a reported increase in the last two years in the number of under-18s dealing drugs.
The research conducted by Janet Robinson and Jim Doherty, found the average age of a drug runner was 13 and the youngest reported was eight; the average age of a drug dealer was 14 and the youngest reported was 10; and underage runners and dealers were predominantly male, though females aged from 12 were also engaged in these activities.
“An explanation for the youngest ages was reported to be that older family members were drug dealers,” said the report.
“Participants reported the perception that young people were attracted to drug dealing as a way to make ‘easy money’ and to increase their social status.”
The report said the use of minors for drug distribution had been a long-standing method used by older, larger scale dealers, as, due to their age, there are less criminal consequences.
It also said the presence of children in the trade could be related to drug debt intimidation “whereby young people are forced to hold and sell drugs to pay off debts”.
It said drug debt intimidation affected both treated and untreated users and all social backgrounds, with males from 14 up most affected.
In relation to drug-related crime, it found drug-related intimidation, drug use and shoplifting were the most frequent. Other crimes including burglary, visible drug dealing, domestic violence, firearms offences and sex work also reported.
It said drug availability appeared to have increased across the D15 region, a mixed demographic area, including affluent areas like Castleknock and more disadvantaged areas such as Mulhuddart and Corduff.
Factors in greater availability included an increase in dealers, dealers making home deliveries to customers, people obtaining drugs from the internet and from some GPs.
It found that while treated drug use was greater in disadvantaged areas, untreated use, including recreational use, spanned all areas.
It referred to the “normalisation” of drugs, including alcohol and cannabis, but also cocaine, tablets, opiates (apart from heroin and methadone) and steroids. The study also found inter-generational drug and alcohol use spanning two to three generations was found in almost half of treated drug users.
