Since 2010 over 28,642 farm-related crime incidents have been reported to gardaí, including burglaries and vehicle, machinery and equipment theft, according to the latest figures from the Central Statistics Office.

A new campaign was launched on Monday morning by Crimestoppers, the Irish Farmers Association, an Garda Síochána and DoneDeal to raise awareness among the public and in particular those in the farming community, of the issue of thefts from farms. This initiative follows the joint campaign run by Crimestoppers and the IFA last year to combat livestock theft.

Of the nearly 30,000 crimes, the most common incidents are thefts from farmyards, with over 2,000 incidents being reported every year since 2010. The next most common occurrence is theft from outhouses or sheds, followed by burglary.

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Rural communities

IFA president Joe Healy said: “Theft Stop is one of a number of initiatives that IFA is working on for farm families and people living in rural communities. In the last 10 months, it has been rolled out across 12 counties – Laois, Offaly, Kilkenny, Galway, Cavan, Monaghan, Cork, Cavan, Limerick, Meath, Sligo and Leitrim.”

“We recognise the importance of providing support and assistance to our members because of the prevalence of crime in rural communities. Our Crime Prevention Officer Colin Connolly is working through our County Executive network to give farmers his insight as a former garda and through practical advice and anti-crime tips.”

Listen to a discussion with garda detective Eugene O'Sullivan at the event in our podcast below:

Tim Dalton, chair of Crimestoppers, said: “We provide a fully confidential means for every citizen to report crime, without fear of recrimination. Calls are free and the information is given completely anonymously. The service consistently elicits very valuable information to assist investigations in both rural and urban Ireland.”

Finbarr Garland, customer safety liaison officer with DoneDeal, warned that when buying online beware if the goods are cheaper than normal; never transfer money without seeing the tractor or machinery first; make sure to test drive and inspect tractors and machinery first for potential problems; and bring someone familiar with the machinery with you.

TheftStop

TheftStop, a joint initiative by the IFA and An Garda Síochána, provides members with a unique security ID. Members can then mark their machinery and equipment with this ID and upload an image of the item to the TheftStop site. Marked and branded items are significantly less attractive to criminals to steal as they’ll be more easily recognisable by the public and harder to sell on.

If you have any information in relation to farm related crime, you can contact your local Garda Station or Crimestoppers on 1800-250 025. Your call to Crimestoppers is free and anonymous and you might receive a reward for information.