The Bill Gardai to spend €50k hiring actors to play suspects in interview training

An Garda Síochána is set to shell out just under €50,000 over a 12-month period on hiring professional actors to play the role of suspected murderers and crime gang members.

Gardaí confirmed the force had awarded the contract to the Co Tipperary-based K&K Distributors to supply actors to play suspected criminals as part of an initiative to train specialist investigators in how best to interview such suspects in complex investigations.

Asked about the value of the contract, a Garda spokesperson said it was estimated to be around €49,000 per annum.

As part of the work, the actors have been asked to assume the role of a murderer, a thief or crime gang member in a Garda interview situation in order to allow the competency of the interviewer to be demonstrated and evaluated.

training

The Garda spokesperson said that training for specialist interviewers had already got under way during the summer.

The participants' work was carried out in a socially distant manner with the Garda spokesperson confirming that all training was in full compliance with the then Covid-19 public health guidelines.

The training programme was interrupted in October in line with the country's move to Level 5 of the 'Living with Covid' plan and the spokesperson said that gardaí don't plan to restart the training programme for the remainder of this year.

The tender documentation for the works requested that actors not be over-dramatic but to reflect typical behaviour in the role they were given.

The actors have also been asked to play suspected criminals who are resistant at interview in order to enable Garda members to demonstrate their competency in such a situation.

victims

In another course module, the actors are asked to assume the role of child sex abuse victims or persons with intellectual disabilities who will allege that they have been victim to a criminal offence.

K&K's winning tender stated that the company had successfully delivered training courses to the gardaí over the previous six years.

Herald