Longford Gardaí investigating as cash stolen during three burglaries inside 24 hours

Longford Gardaí are continuing with their investigations after cash was stolen during three burglaries in the county inside 24 hours.

On August 20 the front door of the Village Inn Take away in Lanesboro was forced open.

The culprits gained access to the till, where an amount of cash was stolen. 

On the same date, three males were involved in a burglary at Tasty Kebab in Lanesboro. Again, the front door was forced open with a sum of cash stolen.

Three suspects made good their escape in a waiting dark coloured BMW type car.

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Also on August 20, the Castlecoote Lodge public house, Castlecoote, Co Roscommon was burgled.

The culprits smashed glass in a rear emergency door to gain entry. A pool table was forced open and contents taken.

An amount of cash was also taken from the premises during the burglary, which occurred at approximately 1.30am. 

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In the early hours of August 20, the Oasis licensed premises in Legan, Co Longford was broken into.

Entry was gained through a side door, which was forced. All rooms were gone through with an amount of cash taken from charity boxes.

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Roscommon Longford Crime Prevention Officer, Sergeant Damian Bartley explained that burglary and vandalism are on-going security concerns for retail and commercial premises.

Sgt Bartley added, "The physical protection of a retail premises from burglary and vandalism follows the crime prevention principle of ‘protect from the perimeter inwards’. Ensuring that premises are well protected and present a high risk to the prospective offender can reduce the opportunity for burglary.

"Well protected premises with good security procedures will deter the criminal from attempting to enter or damaging the premises. In the event of a robbery, the offender will have less time available to commit the crime and the chances of being apprehended are increased."

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Crime Prevention advice:

• Identify areas that may be vulnerable to forced entry and have them made more secure
• Grilles or shutters should be considered to provide a solid barrier around the shell of the building to help prevent intruders gaining entry. 
• Some roll-down grilles provide physical protection whilst still allowing window shoppers to see into the premises. 
• Internal grilles may be fitted, which will have a similar level of protection for the premises only leaving the glass windows and/or the doors exposed.
• Make sure you have a monitored alarm and that it’s fully operational
• Make sure your CCTV is operational, provides facial recognition as well as good quality images and covers any vulnerable areas. 
• Make sure there is sufficient lighting around the premises.
• Cash Tills, after trading hours, left open and empty - cash amounts held on the premises should be kept to the minimum in proper security cash safes
• Smoke-generating devices that activate on unauthorised entry create a smokescreen and foil burglary. They're designed not to damage stock.