90 arrests made during Donegal International Rally weekend

Stephen Maguire

Gardaí have confirmed that a total of 90 arrests were made during the Donegal International Rally weekend.

A total of 30 arrests were made for drink and drug driving while a further 51 people were arrested for public order incidents.

A total of 45 vehicles were seized by gardaí from Thursday to Monday in several villages and towns.

A number of those arrested appeared at Letterkenny District Court and had their cases dealt with.

Many more suspected of drink and drug driving will appear at future dates.

Gardaí confirmed they also dealt with many other types of incidents such as alleged assaults, drug searches and detections, road traffic collisions, criminal damage incidents, burglaries, thefts as well as domestic and mental health related calls.

Tens of thousands of visitors came to Donegal for the event.

A Garda spokesperson confirmed "The Donegal International Rally drew big crowds into the County, most especially into Letterkenny.

"An extensive Policing Operation was in Place for the event, the public order Units were out on patrol each night, the Roads Policing Units were on patrol day and night and they were operating checkpoints and speed checks.

"Motorcyclists were out patrolling and regular uniformed Garda members were out on the beat and on bikes conducting patrols as well as responding to regular calls.

"The Garda Helicopter was around over the weekend also to assist as was a detector dog with the Revenue Customs Service. We also were grateful to have the assistance of some of our Reserve Garda members over the weekend."

Gardaí thanked all those who came to Donegal at the weekend and who complied with the law.

"The vast majority of the visitors to the County were a pleasure to deal with but as always there is a cohort of people who arrive every year for rally weekend with no intention of abiding by any rules.

"Thankfully these people are very much in the minority and we wish to stress that. For the most part, we enjoyed engaging with the many visitors to the county in the lovely sunshine at the weekend and we look forward to doing it all again in 2026."