Tonight’s programme included an interview with Chief Superintendent Patrick Leahy and the Director of the 1916 centenary programme Mr. John Concannon. An Garda Síochána together with their key partners, including Government Departments, Dublin City Council, Public Transport Providers and RTE commenced planning for these events over a year ago. There are over 315 events between January and June of this year taking place. There are 163 events between 13th and 30th of March.
The focus of this information piece is to highlight three main events, commencing with St. Patricks Festival Parade on Thursday 17th March and Easter Sunday, the 27th March (the Centenary Parade and events) and Easter Monday, the 28th March, the Road to the Rising Events.
Chief Superintendent Leahy and Mr .John Concannon offered members of the public advice in terms of their own personal security and safety and also offered awareness in relation to public road closures and public transport arrangements.
The Gardaí at Watercourse Road Garda Station are investigating a number of incidents that occurred in the Mayfield area of Cork City on Friday 10th July 2015.
At approximately 10.30pm, at St.Martin’s, Iona Park, Old Youghal Road, an attempted burglary occurred, the suspect was disturbed by a resident who saw a man at a door at the rear of the house. The suspect was armed with a hammer, which was reported missing from a shed at the back of this house a short time later.
At about 10.50pm a call was received at a local taxi company and a taxi was booked to collect a fare at Boyne Crescent, a short distance away. A taxi driver was dispatched and collected a man at Boyne Crescent. The man got into the rear passenger door but moved across the seats and sat directly behind the driver. He told the driver to take him to the graveyard at Kilcully. When they arrived at the cemetery, the passenger put a leather strap around the driver’s neck and attempted to choke him. He threatened him and demanded money. The driver struggled and the strap broke releasing the grip. The suspect fled from the car and ran in the direction of the graveyard.
Just across the road from the graveyard is Kilcully campsite, where local girl guides had set up tents for the night, at 11.15pm, as one of the leaders was sitting in her car talking on her mobile phone she noticed a man dressed in dark clothing attempting to get into a car parked beside her. She opened her door and confronted him and he fled. A rucksack and a mobile phone were later discovered missing from one of the tents.
A very short distance away, at Old Mallow Road, a man was at home alone settling down for the evening, he had just let his dog out to the back garden. He was in the sitting room watching television. He decided to make a cup of tea and went into the kitchen where he was confronted by a man who attacked him with a hammer. They struggled for a number of minutes in the kitchen. The suspect sprayed the injured party in the face with a substance and struck him on the head with the hammer. The suspect stole the man’s wallet and fled from the house. The suspect was captured on CCTV on this road and appeared to have something in his hand. The wallet was found on this road a short time later.
Appeal:
• An EVOFIT was created by the injured party where the aggravated burglary occurred at Kilcully. Can you identify this man?
• Gardaí are appealing for the taxi driver who collected a man on Old Mallow Road after the aggravated burglary occurred to come forward.
• The suspect who attacked the taxi driver at Kilcully graveyard was wearing a McKenzie bag. This bag was recovered at the campsite where the rucksack was stolen. This rucksack was recovered in the garden of the house at Old Mallow Road.
• The suspect is described at between 25 – 35 years old, stocky build, wearing dark clothing and spoke with a north side cork accent.
Contact Watercourse Road Garda Station on 021 4558260
Gardaí at Mountjoy Garda Station are appealing for information in relation to an aggravated burglary that occured on Mannix Road, Drumcondra, Dublin 9 in the early hours of St.Stephen’s Day, the 26th December 2015.
Three family members were confronted by a man armed with a gun as they were outside the front of the house. The man directed them back into the house where there was another family member present and a struggled ensued between them. The suspect fled on foot. He is described as being in his late twenty’s, of small build, five foot seven inches in height with dark coloured hair and held the gun in his right hand.
An EVOFIT was created of the alleged suspect.
Contact Mountjoy Garda Station on 01 666 8600
On this month’s Crime Prevention Segment, Sergeant Kelvin Courtney was in studio and discussed how to safeguard against phone theft. The advice will strongly recommend that smart phone owners record details of their IMEI number. Only one in three people have this unique 15 digit number, when reporting their mobile phone stolen.
The National Crime Prevention Unit at the Garda Community Relations Bureau have developed an information graphic which demonstrates how to record the IMEI number.
The process is as follows:
1. Simply dial *#06#
2. A 15 digit number will appear on your screen
3. Take a screen shot of this number (this usually involves holding the power button and home button simultaneously, handsets may vary).
4. Email this picture to yourself, giving you a permanent record of this number.
If a smart phone has been found or recovered and the IMEI number has been recorded on pulse, An Garda Síochána can return the phone to the rightful owner.
If the victim has their phone registered with a network provider, the IMEI number can be used to identify the handset and block any further use.
Further crime prevention advice is available here
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The Gardaí at Roxboro Road Garda Station are appealing for information on Missing Person Aengus (Gussie) Shanahan who is missing from his home in Ashbrook, Limerick since February 2000.
Twenty year old Gussie worked in Dell, he normally travelled to and from work using varies methods of public transport. Gussie didn’t drive and did not own a mobile phone. On Friday the 11th February 2000, Gussie finished work at 3pm. He got paid that day and travelled to Limerick City and withdrew £100 from a Bank of Ireland ATM. His father Bob worked at the bank and Gussie met him there and returned £60 he had borrowed from him the week before. Gussie then went across the road to Supermacs and met a friend. They discussed their plans for the evening. Gussie and two close friends travelled to a public house known at the time as Cooper’s Bar on St. Joseph’s Street. They had a couple of sociable drinks and chatted with other customers in the bar. The two friends were renting a house across the road from the pub. Shortly after 9pm one of the friends went home to prepare some food. The other friend followed shortly afterwards. It was arranged that Gussie would stay with them for the night. Gussie remained in the bar and had another drink.
He made two phone calls to some other friends to see if they wanted to meet up with him later in the night. One of the friend’s phone was unanswered and the other was working on an early shift the following morning so passed on the invitation.
Gussie was captured on CCTV leaving the pub and crossing the road towards his friend’s house. A witness recalled how she saw Gussie raise his hand as if to knock on the door and then lower it again. He did not knock on the door. He placed a bottle of beer he was holding onto the ground and put his jacket on and walked towards a laneway known locally as School Alley Lane. Gussie was never seen again.
An extensive investigation followed and several areas and rivers were searched. Gussie’s family have travelled the country looking for answers.
His Mother and Father, Bob & Nancy appeal for help from the public in the hope of finding Gussie. He would have been 36 years old on the 23rd of January 2016.
Appeal:
• Gardaí are appealing to anyone with information in relation to the disappearance of Aengus (Gussie) Shanahan to come forward.
• Gardaí are appealing to anyone who may have seen Gussie on this Friday night or early the following morning to come forward, especially Taxi Drivers in the limerick area.
Contact Roxboro Road Garda Station on 061 214340
The Gardaí at Carlow Garda Station are investigating an armed robbery that occurred at a post office on Staplestown Road on Tuesday 1st December 2015.
At approximately 11.10am, a dark coloured Vauxhall Insignia car. Registration number 11W1774 pulled up on the road outside the post office. The post office is located at the rear of the shop. Three masked men got out of the car and ran into the shop and towards the post office. There were a large number of customers in the shop and at the post office at the time. The raiders attempted to gain entry to the post office and attempted to smash the glass. Two of the raiders were armed with a crowbar and a sledgehammer. The third raider was struck on the head with the crow bar during the attempted raid.
The raiders abandoned their attempt and fled from the shop to the waiting Vauxhall Insignia car which was waiting outside. The car travelled at speed in the direction of Pollerton Road.
The Insignia car was later found a short distance away, with its engine running at the Paddocks housing estate on the Brownshill Road.
The Vauxhall Insignia was stolen during the course of a burglary between the evening of Monday 30th November and the early hours of Tuesday 1st December. The registration of the car is 11W1774. This registration was on the car at the time of the attempted robbery and when it was located after 5pm at the Paddocks.
A blue 5 series BMW was seen at the location in the Paddocks were the insignia was abandoned.
Appeal:
• Gardaí are exploring the possibility that the men transferred into the 5 series BMW car that was parked at the Paddocks estate where the Vauxhall Insignia was recovered.
• The raiders all wore dark clothing and were of stocky build, two of the raiders were armed, the third raider did not appear to be armed.
• Gardaí are asking the public to consider all the elements to this case, the descriptions of the men, the unauthorised taking of the Insignia car at Bunclody together with the possible transfer to the 5 series BMW and to attempt to nominate possible suspects for this crime.
• The fact that one of the raiders struck his accomplice accidently may have resulted in injury or may have been discussed by the men following the attempted robbery.
Contact Carlow Garda Station on 059 9136620
On this month’s traffic segment Garda Derek Cloughley was in studio to discuss "driver distraction" and how seemingly simple things affect a drivers ability to react, especially in a sudden or emergency situation. The most obvious example of how a driver is distracted are mobile phones, talking, texting or data/ internet use – however there are many more that interfere with the task of driving. There was a practical demonstration in studio using the RSA’s reaction test machine that has the ability to test reaction time, and how this is affected by distraction.