Derry PSNI chief reviews a year of challenges and community support

Police in Derry City & Strabane wish everyone in the city and District a safe and peaceful Christmas and New Year.

“2025 has been another really busy year, and this is an opportunity to reflect on some of the issues we've experienced," says Area Commander, Chief Superintendent Gillian Kearney.

"We've enjoyed working with, and supporting partners on several high-profile events, such as St. Patrick’s Day and Halloween. These are wonderful opportunities for us, as a Police Service, to get into the heart of communities, and offer reassurance to people right across the city and District.

"At Halloween we launched Project Vigilant in the city where we deployed plain-clothed officers into the night-time economy to identify potential predatory behaviours to safeguard vulnerable people and, ultimately, to prevent anyone becoming a victim of crime. This is proactive policing at its best to safeguard people in our night time economy.

"This year wasn't without its challenges, however, and we saw disorder develop in the city during the year during which our officers faced extremely difficult conditions. These and other incidents are a stark reminder of the threat our officers face every day.

"Despite these challenges, our officers continue to respond to calls from the public, helping people and preventing harm, detecting and preventing crime and we will continue to do this - every single day.

"Behind every call our officers attend is someone who calls us because they need our help. That can be at times of real crisis for people and, often, we are the first to respond.

"What is heartening is in response to the challenging times we've faced in Derry City & Strabane this year, we’ve seen support from across the community. Unfortunately, we still see our officers being assaulted – something that can never be tolerated or accepted as being 'part of the job'. Our officers are part of the community and work every day to keep people safe. They should never be taken for granted.

Serving PSNI officer pleas guilty at Derry Court to domestic abuse charge

Kyle Millar (28) whose address was given as PSNI Knock in Belfast admitted one charge of course of conduct that would be seen as domestic abuse on dates between February 21 2022 and March 6 2022

Derry man charged with disorderly behaviour on day of grandfather's funeral

Toby Loughlin (20) of Winchester Park in Derry was charged with, on June 24, disorderly behavior after driving to the site where his family were preparing to leave for his grandfather's funeral

“An ongoing priority for us is disrupting the sale and supply of dangerous and illegal drugs, and targeting those who cause the most harm in our communities. This year, as a result of work across Local Policing and Organised Crime, £5 million pounds worth of drugs have been removed from this area. Support from the public is crucial and, with your help, we can focus our efforts on identifying those who make their living and cause so much misery and harm by bringing drugs to our streets and neighbourhoods. Together we can help protect those you care about.

"Finally, I want to wish everyone in the Derry City & Strabane District a safe and peaceful Christmas. Please look after your friends and families, and play your part in keeping each other safe as we approach a New Year.”