Residents are being urged to be extra careful about home security this Christmas after a number of break-ins locally.
Last Monday, November 18, a Shankill woman reported her house being broken into in Crinken Glen between 4pm and 6.30pm, when she and her partner were out.
The post warning others said: “They broke the front door. [The] alarm was ripped off the wall and wires were cut at the main box, but they couldn’t disconnect the sound so they didn’t stay to steal anything.”
The woman who was relieved that nothing was taken, added: “… It’s [a] horrible feeling. The one place your meant to feel safe, and they take it away from you! [It] happened before around this time of year three years ago.”
Gardai told Dublin Gazette that “no arrests” have yet been made in relation to the incident and “investigations are ongoing.”
Another house was reportedly broken into on Quinn’s Road between 4pm and 5pm, with the local resident telling the online community group that “nothing [was] taken,” but the alarm was “ripped off the wall too” and that “thankfully a neighbour scared them off.”
While another local reported: “… they broke into my next-door neighbours house last Wednesday in New Vale. I just missed them by seconds. Two young lads in hoodies…”
In Winter, Gardai report that burglaries increase by 25%, and over 40% of burglaries in winter occur between 5pm and 11pm.
In one in five home burglaries, entry is through an unsecured door or window, with jewellery and cash the most common items stolen.
Gardai’s tips on preventing burglaries are:
- Secure all doors and windows.
- Light up your home, use timer switches when out.
- Store keys safely and away from windows and letterboxes.
- Record details of valuables and don’t keep large cash amounts at home.
- Use your alarm, even when at home.
And when going away, tips include; making your home look occupied, cancel newspaper or milk deliveries, asking a trusted neighbour to park on your driveway, avoid discussing holiday plans on social media or where strangers can hear, leave important documents and valuable items with other family members or a bank, don’t put your home address on luggage when travelling (a work address will suffice), put valuable shed items in the house and make sure that you lock all outside doors and windows and turn on your alarm.
