The Border cannot get in the way of dealing with organised crime, Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) Chief Constable Sir Hugh Orde said yesterday.
Commenting on Thursday's cross-Border operation against oil-laundering on the Louth-Armagh Border, he said that, by working together, the PSNI and the Garda had shown what they were capable of delivering.
He was speaking in Waterford before addressing a conference on policing in 21st century Ireland, along with Garda Commissioner Noel Conroy.
Mr Conroy said both forces were homing in on organised crime.
Asked whether the family of Donna Cleary, who was shot dead in Dublin last weekend, had been let down by the Garda because there was a bench warrant for the chief suspect outstanding at the time of the murder, Mr Conroy said he regretted the loss of life but the Garda had not failed the family in any way.
He suggested people with outstanding warrants against them should turn themselves in to a police station or present themselves in court. This would save a lot of Garda time.
The conference, the first of its kind in Ireland, was held at the Waterford Institute of Technology. Speakers included both police chiefs and Breda Allen of the Dublin Rape Crisis Centre.
Mr Conroy told the conference that the Garda would continue with its policy of consensual, non-confrontational policing but that no one agency had the sole ability to prevent crime or control it. Community involvement was very important, especially in combating public order offences.
Mr Conroy said organised crime was of particular concern to both police forces and the activities of organised criminals had become transnational.
"In Ireland, it consists of small groups who operate independently but facilitate each other with firearms, transport and other facilities," he said.
Non-national involvement in crime was on the increase, in areas such as document fraud, human trafficking, financial fraud and drug-smuggling, the commissioner said. The "dramatic increase in cultural and ethnic diversity" in Ireland would have to be addressed by the force through "visible manifestations of diversity".
Sir Hugh Orde also emphasised the need for community involvement and transparency. He spoke about the policy of recruiting more Catholics and said that Sinn Féin's refusal to be involved with the Policing Board meant they were denying people who voted for them the opportunity to work for the PSNI.
The chief constable said that, though ethnic minorities were still less than 1 per cent in the North, race crime was one of the biggest challenges the force faced.