Gold gang hits County Cavan

A gang targeting gold jewellery has been on the prowl throughout County Cavan in recent weeks and has made off with thousands of euro worth of valuables including gold rings. The Anglo-Celt has learned that the young male gang were at large in the general Kingscourt area last week. They targeted two homes in the town area and another in a remote country area. A senior garda spokesman revealed this week that the gang appear to sit and watch people leaving their homes. In one instance a person had left their home for 20 minutes and the robbery took place. A similar robbery took place in the town area during a 30-minute time span. In the country area, a couple had been away of holidays and when they returned they discovered that their home had been burgled and cash and jewellery had been stolen. People are urged to properly secure their homes, even if they are only going out for a short duration. It now appears that movements are being watched by gangs on the lookout for these potential opportunities. It is understand that this is a professional gang and leave few clues behind them and only target jewellery and money. The Garda spokesman advises people to be on the lookout if they know their neighbours are on holidays. If you notice any strange cars or people hanging around, please report such activity to the Gardaí immediately and note vehicle registration numbers. It's believed that the number of gold exchanges opening up around the country or postal services offering 'cash for gold' being advertised on TV are fuelling an increase in this type of crime. Jeep and trailer theft Meanwhile, Gardaí throughout Cavan are reported to be hunting for a cross-border gang involved in the theft of jeeps, trailers, farm machinery and ride-on lawnmowers. It's believed that vehicles and equipment worth hundreds of thousands of euro have been stolen in the last month from various locations throughout the county. Senior gardaí believe that the property is being taken into Northern Ireland and then shipped onto the Middle East. Gardaí are advising people to take extra security measures to ensure these gangs do not get easy access to such valuable items. People who own such equipment are being urged to take additional security measures to ensure this spate of robberies are brought to an end. If anyone sees strangers moving around different areas either day or night, they are being urged to immediately pass on the information to their nearest garda station. ATM interference Scores of people have been informed that attempts have been made in recent weeks to compromise the ATM cards from various banks in this region. The latest attempt was made on last Friday when a device was found placed on an ATM at Main Street in Cavan town. It appears to have been place on the ATM around 6pm and was detected and removed before 8pm by an eagle-eyed off-duty garda. Security measures in place fully protected people using the ATM and their cards were not compromised. The device is currently being examined by Garda experts to ascertain if it was an actual skimming device.