Prison authorities have called time on the illicit practice of brewing homemade alcohol in Irish jails.
The amount of makeshift booze or “hooch” seized from inmates last year fell by almost 30% to 614 pints.
An average of 1,611 pints of illegal homebrew was confiscated from prisoners each year between 2013 and 2016. However, the total was reduced to 614 pints last year as officers stepped up efforts to tackle the activity.
Hooch or “prison wine” is made by inmates using a number of basic ingredients including water, sugar, fruit and bread. The mix is then left hidden in cells until it ferments.
In 2016, the largest quantity of hooch was seized at Castlerea Prison in Co Roscommon, where the equivalent of 226 pints was confiscated by Irish Prison Service (IPS) officials.
However, figures released under the Freedom of Information Act show that the total haul seized at Castlerea last year was halved to just 108 pints, as prison authorities clamped down on illegal homebrew.
At Midlands Prison in Portlaoise, where detainees include Graham Dwyer and serial killer Mark Nash, the amount of hooch seized fell to just 57 pints last year – compared to 200 pints in 2016.
There was also a marked reduction in the volume of homemade alcohol seized at Mountjoy Prison, where the quantity seized was slashed by over 40% to just 57 pints last year from 97 pints in 2016.
Source: Darragh McDonagh, The Journal.ie, 02/04/18
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