BALLINTOGHER COMMUNITY EXPRESS FEARS OVER SURGE IN CRIME
A large crowd of people filtered into the Community Centre in Ballintogher after 10pm on Wednesday night with one agenda in mind, to stop the recent surge in burglaries happening in the area.
The community alert meeting was being organised by a group who wanted to stand up to the increase in criminal activity happening in their rural region which was understandably causing great concern to householders.
In attendance was Garda Tony Lavin who spoke in depth about rural crime and ways people can make sure their homes and premises are safe from the threat of burglars.
One of the local people spearheading the meeting was Declan Scanlon who had first hand experience of the criminal activity, his van was broken into while he was working nearby and a chainsaw taken.
Declan said something has to be done to alleviate the sense of fear particularly among elderly residents since the recent spate of crimes have begun.
He moved back to the region after ten years working as a tax consultant in Dublin and now runs the family farm.
He said the community alert meeting was set up so people could come together and see what can be done.
He said that since February the increase in break-ins began. “It all started around the 24 th of February.
“We had two white vans in the area and people were reporting they were out looking for scrap or whatever.
“They called to a lot of houses even up in the village, they travelled all around the whole area of Ballintogher.
“That day I was chainsawing on timber at out farm, there was an adjoining premises with a house nearby. When I was working there these men approached me. I stopped and they shouted over that they were looking for some scrap and the owners of the house came out.
“They got a very good look at the chainsaw and me and these were able to associate that with my van which I had parked in the field.
“So basically I thought nothing more of it until the following Saturday.
“That evening I came over the road to feed the cattle and from the time I started the tractor to the time I turned it off while the van was parked at the road, the glass had been smashed in the back.
“In the back of the van I had the chainsaw in it from 3 o’clock that day and it was completely covered over, couldn’t be seen from looking in the window and was completely invisible with hay and nutbags and everything covering it. It was completely not in view and they had to have known in my view that they had to have associated the chainsaw with that van and took the chance to break in the window.
“It was a quick hit and run,” he added.
Declan said that on the same day there were a number of robberies in the Dromahair area too, including a shop.
He added that speaking to a number of locals and the y decided to do something.
“I just starting saying to few neighbours and we had chats ourselves and we said we need to stand up to these individuals ourselves once and for all.
“As a community we are strong, alone we have no power.”
Declan said the closure of rural garda stations are impacting areas in these regions.
“Dromahair garda station closed there a few years ago after 173 years of service.
“It has a huge impact on a rural area such as Ballintogher.
“People used to give out at the time that gardaí were especially nosy and they knew the ins and outs and all the information like but at least they knew if a strange van came into the area that it was very different and therefore like they may have pulled that van in and asked them what they are doing.
“They were under a tight watchful eye from the moment they landed into the area to the moment they left.
“Then along with that, gardaí were working with the community and they had their ears to the ground.
“There is so much criminal activities now that people don’t feel safe in their homes now especially the elderly.
“I’s gone to a stage now that the elderly are afraid to open their doors and what they are doing now is they are opening the windows of the living room or sitting room to speak out through it because they don’t know who they are speaking to.
“The sense of fear here is huge at present and we are trying to alleviate that in some way that it will go against what has been built up.”
Declan said there’s been several break-ins in recent weeks. “We had over 12 robberies in the area in the space of a few weeks.
“In one house in Sooey there was €3/4000 in building equipment and materials stolen.
“That was the Saturday before my chainsaw was stolen. “There was a pub in Gleann raided and the copper cylinders were taken out of it.
“They moved then to a residential house and emptied the kerosene tank out of it.
“They went from there then to another house belonging to a friend of mine in Sooey and stole €3/4000 of equipment. He’s building a house there himself only starting off like and they knew the thing inside out. He went across to watch a match and when he was over the place was robbed. “That was between 2-4pm that day, we can’t account for their movements between four and 7 but around 7-8pm my chainsaw was taken and then a shop was hit later on that evening.
“We have had sightings of several vans, these same vans have been spotted out in the Ballinagar area and they have been reported and the gardaí have been pursuing them. It’s got to the stage now that we know the same vans day in day out. It’s white Ford Transit is what you’re looking out for.
“My advice to people is to be vigilant. To take a screen-shot or write down the number plate of anything suspicious or unusual and ring the gardaí immediately because if people don’t it could result in a burglary for someone else and nobody wants to be robbed like.”
He said for such a small area the community has to work together.
“People are feeling like they are being watched. We had a local contractor there an attempted robbery there two mornings ago and it was a northern reg this time and it came right up on the CCTV up the road and knew where to turn down and everything. They shouldn’t know this like. There was nothing taken because the owner was there and the gardaí were notified and they are pursuing it was the PSNI.
“Gardaí have been working closely with us. Sligo town is the closest Garda station, it’s about 10 miles from here. But see when you make a call, 30 minutes has elapsed before anything can be done and they’re long gone, they are hit and run like.
“They are gone in ten minutes,” he said.
Declan is part of a committee of six who organised Wednesday night’s meeting with the hope that something can be done.
“Our plans are to get householders names and we have people working behind the scenes too with a lot of the elderly who cannot be here tonight there has been a lot of groundwork done too.
“We’re just trying to get a gist of how the text-alert system is going to work.
“We have Tony Lavin here and he will give us an introduction to that.
“We have the committee, we have the people who want it and now it’s to get the text-alert system set up,” Declan added.
DROMAHAIR GARDA STATION CLOSED AND HAS A HUGE IMPACT ON RURAL AREAS