Headlights and door of vintage tractor 'stolen to order' in Limerick

THERE is an old saying that criminals would steal the eyes out of your head if they got the chance but they did steal the headlights out of a vintage tractor in County Limerick.

They also removed the passenger door from the tractor located on a farm in Cappamore.

Sergeant Michelle O’Halloran, crime prevention officer, Henry Street garda station, said: “A farmer arrived at his yard to discover that the passenger door and front headlights had been removed from his tractor overnight from Friday, June 5 to Saturday, June 6.

“It is believed those responsible may have accessed the property through lands to the rear of the farm.”

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Gardai in Cappamore are investigating and would like to hear from anyone who may have any information relating to this incident.

The local crime prevention officer gave the following advice to farmers.

“We would encourage farmers to secure machinery where possible, record serial numbers, consider security lighting and CCTV, and report suspicious vehicles, individuals or activity in rural areas. Community vigilance remains one of the most effective crime prevention measures,” said Sgt O’Halloran.

Limerick ICMSA chairman Jimmy O’Donnell agrees, saying a good, modern surveillance camera is about €1,000.

“Since we put in the cameras we are shocked at how many ‘visitors’ we had that I didn’t know were coming into the yard. Everybody who has a camera is surprised by that.

“It will send a message to your phone if there is an intruder - it can tell the difference between animals and humans. I was in Paris in February and I was able to see what was going on here at home,” said Mr O’Donnell, who added that anything of high value in the farmyard should be “marked”.

The Kilmallock man was one of a number to feature in an in-depth Prime Time report in February into farm theft that gathered CCTV footage and evidence pointing to machinery and livestock being stolen from farms nationwide. Some of the stolen property is later transported to eastern Europe, while others are sold at markets around the country.

“What they stole in Cappamore was very targeted. It is very hard to replace. It is what we tried to highlight on Prime Time that these robberies are targeted. Surveillance cameras are vital to try and prevent them,” said Mr O’Donnell.

He says there isn’t a week that goes by that one of their ICMSA members hasn’t something stolen from them.

“Things are so tight financially at the moment as well,” he adds.

Mr O’Donnell said the side panel of the vintage tractor that was stolen is actually dearer now than when the tractor was new.

“They are serious money - they are irreplaceable, a lot of them. This goes back to the point I made on Prime Time that they were stolen for somebody who has that tractor. They will not rob something unless there is a market,” said Mr O’Donnell.

The Limerick ICMSA chairman highlights the emotional as well as the financial cost.

“It’s very regrettable. The man in question loves machinery and if you had a tractor that you were fond of you’d be fairly upset if all the connections and bits and pieces were robbed,” said Mr O’Donnell.

He concluded by emphasising that “the gardai have been brilliant” in efforts to tackle the ongoing issue of thefts from farms and highlighted the work of An Garda Síochána’s first ever rural crime lead, Superintendent Michael Corbett.