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tiktok

Irish Prison Service 'aware' of TikTok video claiming to be filmed in Mountjoy Prison

The video has been viewed more than 400,000 times.

THE IRISH PRISON Service is “aware” of a TikTok video that claims to show the inside of Mountjoy Prison.

A TikTok video with hundreds of thousands of views purports to have been filmed inside the prison in Dublin.

“The Irish Prison Service does not comment on individual prisoner cases but can confirm it is aware of a video relating to Mountjoy Prison circulating on social media,” the Irish Prison Service told The Journal.

“Preventing the access of contraband (including mobile phones) into prisons will always remain a high priority for the Irish Prison Service,” a spokesperson said.

The short video was uploaded to Tik Tok in the early hours of this morning.

It has since been viewed more than 400,000 times.

The video shows a small room with a bed while the person sings “in Mountjoy” to the tune of “New York” in Alicia Keys’ Empire State of Mind.

In March, Minister Helen McEntee said mobile phones, along with drugs, are viewed as “highly valuable commodities” among parts of the prison population.

“Preventing access to contraband items continues to be a major challenge in prisons today,” McEntee said, responding to a parliamentary question.

“Efforts are made on a continuous basis to prevent the flow of contraband into our prisons through security measures such as the installation of nets over exercise yards, vigilant observation of prisoners by staff, enhanced CCTV monitoring, the stricter control of visits and the use of random and targeted searches on a daily basis,” she said.

TikTok, a popular video-sharing app, allows users to upload videos up to three minutes long.

Videos can gain a large number of views in a short time span if the app places it on users’ home pages (the “For You” page).