The recommendation by the Office of the Inspector of Prisons comes from an investigation into the death of a man in Wheatfield Prison

Relatives of the deceased told investigators from the Office of the Inspector of Prisons that he had expected to receive a suspended sentence and was planning to attend a football match with one of his children later that day.

Arising from the circumstances around the death of Mr Syed of Grosvenor Lodge, Rathmines, Dublin 6, the report by the Office of the Inspector of Prisons (OIP) has recommended that when conducting routine checks of cells, prison officers should be especially attentive to the presence of non-standard items, such as “hammock” type footrests, that could be deployed as ligatures.

The Office of the Inspector of Prisons has recommended that the Irish Prison Service should intensify efforts to physically prevent drugs from entering jails