Gangs target churches during Mass time

A criminal gang is targetting mass times for their smash and grab raids, gardai believe. Cars outside three Cavan churches had windows smashed and contents looted last weekend.

The latest spate of incidents could now lead to parish councils across Cavan adopting a policy of seeking volunteers to man and protect church car parks during mass times in the hope of deterring criminals in future.

Gardai are understood to be tracking the criminal cabal, who its thought may have travelled up to 50 miles from the Midlands to break into cars belonging to unsuspecting parishioners attending masses in Loch Gowna, Kilnavart in Templeport, Kildallan near Ballyconnell.

Among the vehicles broken into on Sunday last, August 20, was one belonging to a parish priest, from which thieves made off with a briefcase containing his religious vestments.

The same group of crooks are linked with a spate of similar style ransackings of three cars at a church near Monilea near Mullingar, Co Westmeath, earlier that same morning.

“When you hit one car you hit all our cars, we are a community after all,” Diocesan Secretary and Chancellor Fr Dónal Kilduff said, describing the bruised feeling among those left to witness the fallout of the theft outside St. Dallan’s church in Kildallan.

As per other incidents, the thieves targetted the car smashing side windows in order to liberate a lady's handbag, whilst also rifling through whatever other possessions were in the car at the time.

“It leaves a bad taste in that nobody is seemingly immune from this, innocent victimised when they were exercising a positivity in their lives. Suddenly you walk back into the harsh reality of life. It just goes so against the standards and principals we have, its just so cynical,” Kildallan priest Fr Kilduff told The Anglo-Celt this week.

While gardai are understood to be following certain lines of enquiries, the suspect vehicle involved is understood to have been operating on falsified plates making tracking it all the more difficult.

The weekend's thefts from outside churches continue a worrying trend developing in the region in recent months, includes outside a local church in Ballyconnell during mass-going time.

“Its never about how much these people get and make away with, but its the destruction, the worry, the fright they leave behind that's the real cost that's counted when they're gone. There is always that nervousness now of when is it going to happen again,” says V. Rev. John Phair PP at St. Patrick’s in Kilnavar, another of the churches targeted on Sunday last.

He however warned against vented anger leading to “a sense of vigilantism”, considering the threat the thieves themselves might also carry if provoked should they be cornered. “Thank God no one has gotten injured in all of this, but that is the worry now. That someone might get seriously injured as a result of this, possibly trying to stop them,” he told the Celt.

Fr Phair furthermore suggested those involved in pilfering from his and parishioners' cars might find a better use of their time by listening to the word of God instead of pursuing criminal intents.

“Somehow I don't think that's their modus operandi. They don't seem to care about people at all, they don't care what annoyance it causes,” says Fr Phair, who had a suitcase from his car parked outside the church broken into a briefcase containing his chasuble and other religious garments stolen.

Separately, yet adding to the heightened sense of hurt and trepidation felt by parishioners countywide, tools and equipment worth an estimated value of €15,000 were appropriated from a shed at Bailieborough Parochial House beside St Anne's Chapel.

Belonging to Bailieborough Parish and the local Community Enterprise scheme, the equipment stolen includes a two-year-old ride on orange Kubota lawn mower, Stihl strimmers, hedge cutters and blowers, as well as other tools, and a twin axle blue trailer. The thefts are believed to have taken place between Thursday and Friday, August 10-11 between 4pm and 7pm.

Its believed the brazen raiders went so far as to make use of the CE scheme trailer to load the ride-on lawnmower and anything else to could fit on to it before making their unlawful getaway.

The area around the parochial house and shed had been cordoned off as a construction site with renovations taking place both at the house and church at the time the shed was broken into. While there had been a lot of activity in the area in recent times, the traditional builders holiday towards the end of the month meant that works had ceased for a period.

The loss of the tools and other outdoor and landscaping equipment has been badly left in the east Cavan town especially give the proximity to the upcoming annual Blessing of the Graves.

Fr. Michael Router PP at St Anne's in Bailieborough meanwhile commented on the added security measures the parish is considering employing to protect their properties in future, including a suite of up to 16 new CCTV cameras.

“Unfortunately that's what you have to do now. Its a sad state of affairs, you shouldn't have to secure a church in the same way you would a bank, but that seems to be the way its gone.”

He added: “The ride-on was unfortunately [the parish's] property. Its hit us more that we're in the run up to the Blessing of the Graves in two weeks time, and there had been a major push to get cemetery looking well for that. So that's very disappointing. There is a push on now to try and put together equipment for that as well.”

While mounting extra crime patrols at night in rural areas as part of Operation Thor, aimed at tackling the activities of criminal gangs, Garda Inspector Michael O'Donoghue called on the public to remain vigilant and report suspicious behaviours to the authorities.

“Two or three minutes, that's all it takes these lads and they're gone. They don't stick around. We are on high alert, we have extra patrols out there on the ground, but we can't be everywhere. So it's important the public are aware and we would encourage them to contact us if they witness anything suspicious.”

Anyone with information about the break ins is asked to contact Cavan Gardai on 049 4368800, or in the case of Bailieborough Gardai on 042 969 4570.