Tralee-native garda puts veterinary skills to use
A MALLOW-BASED Garda is using the experiences she gained as a veterinary nurse prior to joining the force to help tackle crime against the farming community across the Cork North division.
Tralee native Katie Burke, who has been stationed in Mallow since graduating for the Garda Training College in Templemore 14 months ago, has been instrumental in setting up a ‘farming watch’ style scheme covering the region.
Katie told The Corkman that, despite qualifying as a veterinary nurse after leaving school and working in the sector for a number of years, the idea of joining the Gardaí was something that had always been in the back of her mind.
“I really enjoyed what I was doing, particularly engaging with members of the farming community, even though I do not come from a farming background. However, I wanted to try something different and decided to join An Garda Siochána,” she said.
She explained that, upon taking up their first posting, each new Garda is tasked with taking part in a community initiative, ideally something suited to the experiences they gained before joining up.
“Given my previous dealings with the farming community and the relatively high instances of crime against farmers – for example, the theft of expensive machinery – I thought it would be good to combine my old life with my new one,” said Katie.
With this in mind, Katie contacted Seamus O’Keeffe, general manager at Kanturk Marts, asking if they would be interested in joining the initiative.
“Seamus was fully behind the idea and allowed me to set up an information stall at the mart. I also visited open farm days and spoke to farmers about how crime has impacted them. One thing that struck me was the seeming reluctance of members of the farming community to report crime. I think may be a simple case of them not wanting to bother us,” she said. “I view my role as trying to break down barriers, build up rapport with local farmers, encourage them to engage with us and report instances of crime.”
Katie said that the response to the initiative, which has been running for the past 12 months, had been “very positive”.
“A key element of the initiative is crime prevention. For example we encourage farmers to list their machinery, take pictures of it and record serial numbers so, if stolen machinery is recovered, it can be traced back to its rightful owner,” said Katie.
“As any farmer will tell you, stolen machinery costs a lot to replace. So if thieves are made aware that if they are caught with stolen items that can be easily traced back to the scene of a crime, it will put them off. For us, prevention is better than the cure, and judging from the positive response we have received, this initiative does seem to be driving that message home,” she added.
Seamus O’Keeffe said Kanturk Marts was only too happy to get involved with the initiative.
“Crime and isolation are two big issues in rural areas, so it is great for people to be able to meet face to face with a Garda and speak to them about their concerns,” said Seamus.