€100k theft victim’s home raided twice

Thieves targeted the home of a pensioner just hours after gardaí recovered more than €100,000 of his life savings which had been stolen the day before.

The incident prompted gardaí to issue another warning to elderly people or people living alone not to keep large amounts of cash at home.

The man’s life savings were stolen from his home in Kanturk in North Cork on the night of Oct 14 while he was away.

Two men were arrested the next day after gardaí seized €50,000 from a hotel room safe in Cork City after being called to deal with disruptive guests at the Silver Springs Moran Hotel.

Another €15,000 was recovered a few hours later near a bus stop on the Lower Glanmire Rd.

During a series of follow-up searches, a substantial amount of the rest of the stolen cash was recovered.

However, gardaí did not return the cash to the man and have retained it as evidential material.

Two men — Malcolm Kelly, aged 26, from Coolageela, Kanturk, and Ger Ryan, aged 30, from Park View, Charleville — were charged in connection with the Oct 14 burglary.

However, the house was targeted again on the night of Oct 16 while it was vacant. The raiders only went as far as the kitchen and did not ransack the house.

Gardaí believe they were looking for the recovered cash in the mistaken belief that it had been returned.

Insp Tony Sugrue said gardaí were following several lines of inquiry.

He appealed for anyone with information, or who may have seen suspicious activity in the area on the night of Oct 16, to contact Kanturk Garda Station.