Stolen guitar with huge sentimental value recovered thanks to Limerick Leader reader
POPULAR local band Free Beer have got a stolen guitar - with huge sentimental value - back, thanks to an eagle-eyed Limerick Leader reader and the gardai.
The musical instrument was taken from a car parked on Summerville Avenue, South Circular Road, Limerick city on Friday evening, October 15, 2021.
The band was, and still is, reeling from the death of their great friend and drummer Pádraic Kearney. The father-of-four from Adare was only 47-years-old when he collapsed suddenly while walking away from Croke Park after Limerick's All Ireland hurling win on August 22, 2021. His anniversary Mass took place two weeks ago.
Daragh Naughton, of Free Beer, said in an appeal on the Limerick Leader last year: “Our acoustic guitar was stolen from one of our band member’s car from outside his house. The sentimental value was huge, especially with everything that happened with Padraic. Whoever stole it will have no value on it but it meant the world to us.”
The story was widely shared at the time but the cold-hearted thief bided their time before putting it up for sale on a well-known website recently.
Despite the passage of time, a person who read the story last year recognised the Furch guitar.
“We are so grateful to the eagle-eyed Limerick Leader reader who brought the guitar’s sale to our attention. The guitar had been advertised on a national website and the Leader reader recognised it from the Limerick Leader Facebook story from almost 12 months ago. The band is very grateful for that assistance and for the hard work of An Garda Síochána who took possession of the guitar and arranged its safe return,” said Daragh.
The guitar is priceless to Free Beer.
“It holds a lot more value to us than just a monetary one. We had many great nights of music with our dear friend and drummer Pádraic Kearney who passed away tragically in August of 2021 in the aftermath of the All-Ireland final. The guitar was a piece of all of us collectively and its theft was a tough blow. We are so happy to have it returned.
“We sincerely wish to thank the staff at the Limerick Leader and the kindness of the member of the public who recognised the significance of the guitar to us. Without their intervention and the help from An Garda Síochána, the guitar may have inadvertently changed hands and never emerged again,” said Daragh.