Gardaí to advise businesses on security

GARDAÍ are offering businesses in Cork city security checks following a 10% rise in burglaries in the first three months of this year.

Concern has been raised that petty crime is on the increase, because a similar rise in house break-ins has been recorded during the same period, and thefts from parked cars are up 19%.

Superintendent Barry McPolin said Garda statistics showed that 75% of burglaries at commercial premises happened during the day.

Around 50% of house break-ins also happen during the day, when the occupants are at work. Only 7% occur in the evening, while the remaining 43% occur at night, especially over the weekend and between the hours of 2am and 4:45am.

“It mainly happens over the weekend because householders are more relaxed about their security. Sometimes parents will leave a key under a stone so their children can let themselves in, or sometimes they simply leave the door open,” Supt McPolin said.

“Thieves will normally enter the house downstairs and typically steal handbags, cash, i-pods, mobile phones and car keys.”

A number of cars stolen from Cork city have ended up being used in robberies in the west of Ireland.

Supt McPolin said that building sites are also a popular target because valuable tools and machinery are often not stored securely.

“There should be proper security on the site and good lighting. Commercial premises should have silent back-up alarm systems, so if anybody cuts the actual alarm this is signalled to an independent monitoring site which will contact gardaí and a key-holder,” he said.

He added that tracking devices should also be fitted to expensive machinery.

“A valuable digger, which was stolen in Cork 18 months ago, was recently located on a building site in central London because it was fitted with a GPS tracking device,” the Supt said.

Opportunist thieves are also targeting cars regularly parked by commuters on the perimeter of the city, and also at cemeteries and picnic areas.

“People should never leave valuables on show in their car, especially as it only takes a thief 30 seconds to smash a window and steal the contents,” he added.

Community gardaí will be present at Mahon Point Shopping Centre tomorrow from 10am to 2pm to offer householders advice on security. They will also have a stand at Ballincollig Shopping Centre at the same time on Friday.

Businesses requiring security checks should contact Sergeant Tony Davis at Anglesea Street Garda Station on [phone].