Rural crime: views of the public representatives

The problem

‘‘Rural crime is a blight of the landscape of rural Ireland. Since the network of roads has improved, criminals can get around the country in a few hours. Organised criminals are making a career in crime with farmers having to spend millions of euro trying to protect their property from criminals.’’

The solution

‘‘Operation Thor is having a reasonable impact but there still needs to be a major re-examination of the whole concept of community policing.’’

IFA president

The problem

“No matter what meeting I go to, whether it is a county executive, a branch meeting or the launch of a show, it invariably comes up in conversation. The security you feel in your own place comes into question. Once you have been burgled that is taken away.”

The solution

“All we can do as an organisation is to continue to lobby for extra resources, continue to highlight TheftStop and create an awareness among rural people on what should be done. We need to create awareness and a new community spirit towards highlighting strange activity in the area.”

The problem

‘‘At the moment, crime has quietened a bit in our area. Towns close to a motorway are in more of a danger than towns more isolated. The loss of some of the rural garda stations has been a huge downfall to the local community. One garda car in a 40- or 50-mile radius just isn’t good enough. It’s a sad day if someone’s afraid to live in their own home.’’

The solution

‘‘More cameras on bridges and strategic roads should be put in place. Guards should be integrating with the local community and use local knowledge to see what is going on in the area.’’

The problem

‘‘Crime is an issue all over rural Ireland. A big problem is that farmers don’t even report some crimes to the guards. Farmers also need to be more observant and use smartphones along with surveillance equipment to prevent crimes from happening.’’

The solution

‘‘Installing CCTV cameras and signs along with partaking in neighbourhood watch schemes is a great way of reducing rural crime. People should be observant and take note of suspicious activity. Social media is brilliant in reducing crime and reducing the workload of the guards.’’

The problem

‘‘The crime rate can tend to go in bursts in Donegal. At the minute, it’s not too bad but there is still a huge need for additional policing. It’s a big ask for the gardaí to do their job with the small number they have. We have issues because we are so close to the border and criminals can go across the border and quickly out of the jurisdiction.’’

The solution

‘‘Communities must continue to tie together and join schemes such as community alert along with constantly feeding information back to the gardaí. There is a huge need for more policing numbers around the country particularly in border areas.’’

The problem

‘‘Last week around the Cavan/Monaghan area, there were eight robberies in the space of a couple of hours. The closest garda car on call was almost an hour away from where the robberies occurred. With Brexit looming and rural crime on the up, the closure of rural garda stations is scandalous. With Brexit, smuggling and cross border crime is only going to become a bigger issue.’’

The solution

‘‘Resources have to be replenished and more and more guards must be sent to rural areas. We are a prime target for criminals because guards don’t possess the resources to stop robberies from happening. The Government must take a proactive approach to stopping rural crime.’’

Full coverage: rural crime

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