Dublin Ink Dublin Ink

A DUBLIN TATTOO studio has defended a sprinkler system it put in place to deter people from sleeping rough outside the premises.

There have been criticisms levelled at Dublin Ink in Temple Bar after the move was reported by Dublin Inquirer yesterday.

In a statement on Facebook, Dublin Ink said it was not its intention to “wet homeless people while they were sleeping” or to cause any harm. This system operates with a motion sensor to spurt out water before a person has a chance to enter the porch.

This reduces the chances of anybody getting wet, and acts as a deterrent for people using our property for drug use or antisocial behaviour. We are extremely cautious of the weather and the device is most certainly not used in a constant manner.

The business said it had disabled the sprinklers five days ago.

It also said two of its staff members were held hostage in the studio after a man “held a blood filled syringe in an attempt to stab them”.

“Every morning, our staff members clean blood smears, used condoms, syringes, and other bodily fluids such as faeces off the premises. We have sent petitions to the council and in attempts to contact the right organisations we get passed around from one to the other and the responsibility is continually placed in our hands,” the statement said.

Dublin Ink also released a number of graphic images showing discarded syringes, excrement and blood outside the premises.