Alcohol seized from Dungannon 10 year-old at underage drinking '˜hotspot'

The details and the alarming scale of teenage alcholol consumption in the Mid Ulster area has been laid bare by the latest figures released by the PSNI, showing that Cookstown is one of Northern Ireland’s most notorious hotspots for the illegal behaviour.

In total, police have seized 799 alcohol items from teenagers in the town since 2011.

Overall more than 17,400 bottles and cans of beer, 8,000 ciders, over 5,800 alcopops and 1,700 bottles of wine have been seized from minors since 2011.

Among those who had alcohol seized was the alarming case of a ten year-old from Dungannon.

Police in Coalisland have also posted photographs online of the shocking haul of alcohol bottles seized after they disrupted a group of underage children drinking in the town.

The quantity of spirits consumed by the children prompted health fears and a warning from police. They appealed to parents to be aware of the problem of underage drinking in the east Tyrone town, warning: “Please know where your children are and what they are up to. The quantity of spirits in this instance could have led to serious safety concerns for the children involved.”

SDLP Councillor Malachy Quinn has also raised concerns over crowds of underage drinkers in the town. “Id like to congratulate the PSNI on taking action over under-age drinking, he said. “I have had a steady rise in complaints about under-age drinking and anti-social behaviour associated with it.”