Inspector O'Brien said: “It was another busy Easter weekend on the North Coast, and I would like to thank our colleagues in the Council, Translink and Driving & Vehicle Agency (DVA), and also in the Ambulance and Fire Service, for all their assistance.

“The policing operation we put in place at the railway stations in partnership with Translink ensured that everyone got to and from Portrush safely and we are grateful for the support we got from the staff at all the stations and on board the trains.

“Over the course of the weekend there were three arrests for public order offences including disorderly behaviour, common assault and assault on police. There was 1 fixed penalty notice and 5 Community Resolution Notices issued for drug offences.

“This was a welcome result and a reduction on last year and proactive engagement from our officers ensured that residents and visitors were happy, reassured, and free to enjoy themselves.

“Meanwhile, a vehicle safety operation was launched in conjunction with the DVA. 40 vehicles were issued with an immediate prohibition, meaning that the vehicle is not roadworthy, was not permitted to continue on the road and the drivers received fixed penalty notice or face prosecution in court.

“A number of drivers were issued with fixed penalty notices for a range of motoring offences including excess speed, mobile phone use and unsafe modifications to their vehicles. Furthermore Police utilised footage sent in by members of the public via MIPP (Major Incident Policing Portal) to commence prosecution against 5 drivers.  

“In addition Safety Camera Vans deployed at locations across the North Coast made 635 detections for excess speed. This is a worrying trend and an increase on the 518 detections last year. Speed is a major contributory factor in fatal and serious injury road traffic collisions.

“As always we are grateful for the support of residents, businesses and visitors during these peak times for our area. We are very much part of the community here on the North Coast and it is in all our interests to ensure that our towns are safe and vibrant areas for people to live, work and visit.”