GAA club issues warning on botched tarmac scam
Rogue contractors harassed members and made over 150 calls seeking cash
A GAA club has issued a warning after it was targeted by rogue contractors who harassed members with over 150 calls, demanding thousands of euros for a botched tarmac job.
The Naomh Fionbarra & St Anne’s club in Togher, Co. Louth, was the victim of an ‘elaborate and devious’ scam last week by men posing as well-intentioned tradesmen offering their services.
The situation began when a volunteer groundsman was approached by a worker in a marked van, offering to tarmac the site at €8 per square metre.
The contractor claimed he had a lot of tarmac left over from a nearby job that was cancelled and had to either dump it or sell his services at a ‘very low cost’.
But before the groundsman could get official approval from the club, more men had arrived and began to unload a black substance mixed with gravel chippings around the vicinity.
Even though the finished job was unsatisfactory, the workers demanded thousands of euros for their service, which the club refused to pay.
However, this resulted in a campaign of harassment and threats over two days.
Club chairman Mark McArdle told the Irish Daily Mail: ‘It was relentless. These people managed to get contact details from three of our members and straight away started to demand a ridiculous sum of money.
‘They made well over 150 calls and even though we showed the clubmen how to block their numbers, they were using about six different mobiles from UK and Irish lines.
‘It was literally like they were in a call centre trying to break us. Our members were so frightened to the point where they wanted to pay the money themselves just to make the harassment stop.’
The club notified gardaí about the incident, who said the individuals were well known for pulling the same stunt on many other unsuspecting people.
Mr McArdle said gardaí could not initiate criminal proceedings as the incident was deemed a civil matter. Instead, they advised the club to make a smaller payment just to make the men go away.
‘We’re not disclosing how much we paid them, but it’s significantly lower than what these scammers were demanding,’ the club chairman added.
He continued: ‘We just wanted them to stop as we didn’t know what they were capable of. It wasn’t an ideal conclusion, but we came up with a fair price for two hours’ work and for the materials they used.
‘All they did was cover the grounds with a spray of black tar and a sprinkle of gravel – it was a pure sham job. They had quoted us €8 a metre and when they did it, it came to thousands of euros but we paid just a fraction of it.’
Mr McArdle said he hopes highlighting this unfortunate incident will help raise more awareness of rogue contractors.
‘The worst thing you can do is engage with these people in any way. As soon as you portray some kind of interest in their service they will start their job immediately and harass you out of a lot of money,’ he said.
Gardaí regularly issue advice to the public regarding rogue traders and bogus callers.
A spokesman said they often target vulnerable members of communities.
‘If you have elderly or vulnerable neighbours and see or hear about bogus traders doing the rounds, let them and ourselves know so we can put out additional patrols,’ a statement read.
It added: ‘If you suspect that anyone who calls to your door selling goods or services is not who
‘Our members were so frightened’ ‘Apply the chain or door limiter’
they say they are, tell them you are not interested and call gardaí immediately.
‘Genuine tradespeople won’t be offended by any queries the gardaí may make. If you are answering the door to “cold callers”, apply the chain or door limiter before opening the door.’
Rogue contractors now often travel to the US to offer their illegitimate services there.
Last week, an Irishman who scammed a 74-year-old disabled man out of more than $100,000 in Massachusetts was deported to Ireland where he is wanted on assault charges.
Hughie O’Donoghue, 25, was recently featured in an investigation by local media on scams involving Irish Travellers posing as contractors in Massachusetts.
Described as a ‘threat to the residents of Massachusetts communities’, the young man was issued with a deportation order following his arrest in October 2023 for conning an elderly, disabled man.