Hostage ordeal family recovering after Post Office raid

A terrified family were recovering today after they were held hostage overnight as part of a post office heist.

Three men wearing balaclavas and armed with iron bars and wooden clubs entered the home of the Dillon family – who run the post office at Main Street, Ballymahon in Co Longford.

Inspector Tom Curley from Athlone garda station said: “It was a horrifying experience for them and very traumatic, they were very upset, I was at the scene myself this morning, they were visibly shaken as a result of the incident.”

The gang entered the residence of the post mistress June Dillon – which was attached to the post office – between 2am and 3am today.

Insp Curley said: “They went to one of the bedrooms where the 15-year-old daughter was asleep. They woke her and brought her into the parents’ bedroom and demanded the keys of the safe.

“They were informed there was a time-lock on the safe and it wasn’t possible to open it.

“So they remained in the house and they brought all three down to the living quarters, seated them and they kept them there until morning.”

The three family members were not physically harmed but were threatened during the lengthy ordeal.

The gang members – who were armed with wooden clubs like pick-axe handles - then also held three post men captive in a bedroom after they arrived at around 7am for work.

Insp Curley said that the post mistress was forced to allow the men into the premises as normal.

The raiders then made off with an undisclosed quantity of cash after the time-lock on the safe was finished. Gardaí have confirmed they were quickly alerted at around 8.25am.

John Kane, general secretary of the Irish Postmasters’ Union, said they would be discussing security issues with An Post again on the back of this robbery.

He said: “It has to be a hugely traumatic experience for any family or for post masters or mistresses, let alone held hostage for several hours in their home.”

The union official said the family were obviously very traumatised.

Mr Kane said that many elderly post masters or mistresses were wary of going back to work after being robbed – especially if they lived on the premises.

The IPU said this was the first hostage taking robbery in post offices in recent years.

“These hostage ones are rare enough but I can’t say they won’t become the norm,” he said.

Over half of the 1,400 post offices around the country also contain residential quarters.

Mr Kane said: “No doubt there will be genuine concerns raised in meetings that more could be done, or should be done.”

The IPU said they discussed security issues with An Post on regular occasions. He added they did not want to turn the post offices into fortresses and destroy their welcoming atmosphere.

Insp Curley said they would be probing if there were any connections to the recent raids within a 20-mile radius of Ballymahon – including Glasson and Horseleap in Co Westmeath.

However, he told RTE radio it was too early to comment on if it was connected.

Insp Curley said: “The indications are there were local accents and also a mention of possibly a Dublin accent. It is very early in the investigation and we are taking statements from people.”

Gardai at Ballymahon Station have appealed for anyone who saw any suspicious or unusual activity on Sunday evening or in the early hours of this morning to contact them.

Insp Curley said: “These people had to be in the vicinity of Ballymahon for a considerable period of time because it was a well-planned operation and very patient operation.”

Officers are also seeking any information the type of vehicles involved in the robbery.