The number of Gardaí assigned to the Kerry Drugs Unit has increased by 66% since 2015.
Figures - provided by the Minister of Justice, Helen McEntee, in the Dáil recently - show there are currently 15 gardai within the unit in the county, up from 9 in 2015.
Nationally, the number has increased by 21%, from 258 in 2015, to 312 this year.
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Elsewhere, there was a 30% reduction in the drugs unit in Cork city, falling from 23 last year to 16, as of the end of September.
An Garda Siochana received €2.14 billion in Budget 2023, with the aim of recruiting 1000 new Gardai and additional staff next year, for a total workforce of 19,000 people.
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