Galway City burglary rate halved over past year

The number of burglaries committed in the city has halved, which has helped to drive down Galway’s crime rate.

Garda Chief Superintendent Tom Curley brought good tidings to the pre-Christmas meeting of the Galway City Joint Policing Committee (JPC) when he informed members there were 1,515 fewer crimes recorded in the first 10 months of the year compared with 2015.

That represented a 22% reduction in crime compared to the previous year.

The reduction was attributed largely to big falls in property-related crimes.

According to his latest report to the JPC, there were 191 burglaries in the city between January and October. That represented a 51% reduction, or 200 fewer burglaries.

Thefts from the person – which includes stealing of mobile phones and pick-pocketing – has fallen by 44%, down by 50 to 64.

There was one fifth fewer ‘other thefts’, down by 49 incidents to 199. Thefts from shops fell by 9%, down by 41 incidents to 429.

And the number of thefts from vehicles was down by 14% to 106, which was 17 fewer than the corresponding period last year.

Fianna Fáil City Councillor Peter Keane was among a group of several members who welcomed the overall reduction in city crime rates.

Cllr Keane said any day you see a report showing crime has fallen by 22% is “a good day for the city”.

He said it was particularly good given the constraints on Garda manpower in recent years.

In response to questions from Cllr Keane, Chief Supt Curley said schemes such as community alert, text alert and neighbourhood watch had helped to reduce burglaries.

So too had the increased awareness by homeowners, who were taking more precautions to safeguard their properties.

Cllr Keane praised sergeant Pat Flanagan, the Crime Prevention Officer, whose message, he said, was getting across to the public.

Chairperson of the JPC, City Councillor Mike Cubbard welcomed the reduction in crime.

However, he warned the public to be vigilant in the weeks leading up to Christmas.

Cllr Cubbard reminded the meeting that last year a family’s Christmas was ruined, after burglars broke in and stole presents from under the Christmas tree.

He said he didn’t want to see a similar scenario this year.