Cllr fears Tralee may be next on the murder list

January 1996

SOMEBODY will be the victim of a violent murder in Tralee if more Gardaí are not deployed in the town as a matter of urgency, Tralee Town Council member Jim Finucane warned this week in the wake of a spate of murders nationwide.

Cllr Finucane said it was ‘only a matter of time’ before there was a murder in Tralee along the lines of the three tragic cases in other parts of the country this week.

As Tralee suffered a spate of crimes over the past seven days, including a vicious attack on a motorist as he walked to his car, Cllr Finucane called for longer prison sentences for those found guilty of violent crimes.

The motorist was attacked and beaten by a gang of five as he walked to his car, parked near McCowen’s in Edward Street, at 9pm on Monday.

The attackers were attempting to take his car keys but failed because a passing motorist stopped and confronted them. The man was then able to drive to Tralee General Hospital where he was treated for injuries, which were reported to be not serious.

“I’m calling on the Justice Minister to immediately implement a series of measures to tackle rural crime at its heart. We need more Gardai with more equipment and more patrol cars. Morale among Gardaí is low everywhere at the moment and it’s simply because their hands are tied,” said Cllr Finucane.

Cllr Finucane’s appeal for more Gardaí was echoed by a number of local business people, following a series of attacks on business premises over the past week.

Kelliher’s Car Sales in Rathass was targeted by vandals who caused a considerable amount of damage, according to Kelliher’s Sales Director, Tom O’Connor.

Four months ago, thieves held, staff at knife-point and got away with a substantial sum of money.

“Almost every weekend there is damage done and at this stage we have even stopped reporting it to the Gardai as it seems to be falling on deaf ears. Tyres have been slashed, radios stolen and new and second-hand cars scratched.

We have even had to employ an extra paintman as we are still trying to fix last week’s damage,” said Mr O’Connor.

In a separate attack by vandals, a skip was set on fire at McElligott’s garage in Oakpark on Sunday evening.

Staff found the skip on fire and called the Tralee Fire Service who brought the blaze under control. Three youths were seen running from the scene by staff at the garage.