Fianna Fáil Deputy Éamon Ó Cuív has called for more gardaí to be stationed at Ballinrobe Garda Station following a recent spate of robberies. Deputy Ó Cuív said it is painfully obvious that now is not the time to shut down more Garda stations across Mayo and Galway, as the gardaí are already stretched beyond their limit and the rate of burglaries in the region is soaring rapidly.
“Instead of putting all his energy into attacking our local Garda resources, Minister Shatter should be looking at ways to catch the criminals responsible for these robberies and deter further raids in the area,” said Deputy Ó Cuív. “Things have got so bad that the Gardaí in Mayo have been forced to request the help of the Garda Air Support Unit to track down these criminals. How can Minister Shatter justify such a savage attack on community Garda resources in this area while dozens of homes and businesses are being targeted every day by criminals and it is clear that the local gardaí need extra help to tackle this crime spree? My colleague Dara Calleary questioned the Justice Minister about the Mayo crime wave in the Dáil a number of weeks ago and appealed to him to provide the local gardaí with extra resources. Instead of doing this, the Minister went in the completely opposite direction and has axed even more Garda stations in this region. It is a disgrace.
“I am calling on the Minister and the Garda Commissioner to introduce the text system of crime reporting, similar to what was introduced on a pilot basis in Longford some time ago. This could again be piloted in Ballinrobe, acting as immediate deterrent to criminals and allowing the gardaí to test the system for future use.
“It is very distressing when people’s houses are broken into and on dark winter nights people often feel even more anxious and vulnerable, especially older people and those living alone. These people need some reassurance instead of the added fear of losing more security in their community. Even the simple and relatively cost-free step of introducing a text system in the area would certainly make a difference to them at this time,” said Deputy Ó Cuív.
