Garda chief’s warning to would-be vigilantes

Galway’s Garda Chief was told by one man during a discussion on rural crime this week – I have a shotgun and I’ll protect my family at all costs.

But Chief Superintendent Tom Curley strenuously warned homeowners not to take matters into their own hands by arming themselves in an attempt to protect their properties from intruders.

At this week’s public meeting of the Joint Policing Committee in Oranmore, Chief Supt Curley said that although there had been an overall decrease of five per cent in the number of burglaries this year, it was “nothing to cheer about.”

The meeting heard from a local man who said that he would not hesitate to use his legally-held shotgun to scare off would-be burglars. “I’ll protect my wife, and my property at all costs,” he said.

However, the Garda Chief would not condone this plan of action. “There is no way I’m going to say ‘this is the way to go’ – we haven’t lost the battle,” he replied.

“If you use excessive force, who’s going to be up before the judge? We have cars, and we will respond to it. I could not support or give advice that we should tackle people. They may have an iron bar or weapons themselves, and there could be several fatalities.”

He added that €5m was being spent on overtime for Gardaí to work in the area of crime prevention.

Most residential burglaries, he said, take place between the hours of 5pm and 10pm.

“We run out to the shop, and don’t lock the door,” he said.

“Twenty seven per cent of burglars go through the front door – how many people still leave their key under the geranium pot, or the red bin – that’s the first place the gurrier will look.”

A quarter of all burglars access a home through a rear door, and 28% through a rear window that has been left open.

“There are 850-odd burglaries every year in Galway city and county,” he added.

“Homes that look unoccupied they break into. You think you’re saving on your light bill, but leave two or three on when you go out.”

He said that there may be a suggestion that thieves are following delivery trucks to new or unoccupied homes, and proceed to steal all the white goods from within.”

He encouraged home owners to invest in inexpensive CCTV systems, which serve as an excellent deterrent.

In relation to Galway’s easy access for criminals from other cities, due to the motorway network, he assured members and the public alike that Galway Divisional Unit was not isolated.

“If we have information, we team up with the national support unit – there are half a dozen gangs coming out of the different locations, but they are being monitored. We have successes, but people have to be vigilant.”

Cllr Mary Hoade who said that the coming of winter, and with it the dark evenings, the Community Alert Schemes must kick into action.

She particularly mentioned elderly and vulnerable people living on their own

The Garda Chief agreed.

“It is very important this time of year to energise the community alert schemes – the sticker on the door is not enough,” he said.

“Where we have joined-up thinking, we have been very successful.”

He said that protecting the elderly and vulnerable was high on his agenda, and had addressed this issue with Gardaí in the 30-odd stations (of a total of 46) that he has visited recently.

“With data protection, it is not easy to get data from the various agencies. I was in Clifden last week, and we have identified all the vulnerable people – living on their own, or with little contact with family or neighbours.

“Each Garda has been given two people to visit twice a month. In Galway City it is a bigger job, but we are tackling it.

“People are crying out for a Garda to visit them, that’s the feedback I’m getting.

“Being from rural Ireland, myself, I recognise the importance of being out there and engaging with people.”