'Appalling and destructive' - Cruel petty vandals target Longford women's shelter
CCTV footage of the incident is being investigated by Longford Gardaí
A Longford organisation that offers critical support services to women and children fleeing domestic violence has described as "destructive" and "appalling" an act of “petty vandalism” at its refuge centre in Longford town.
The incident occurred at Longford Women's Link in Ardnacassa between the hours of 2:40pm and 5pm on Saturday June 13, and between 11am and 4pm last Sunday 14.
The organisation has spoken out against the senseless act of vandalism, which centred mainly around their creche garden, causing damage which they say will have a significant financial impact.
It is known that the incident was caught on CCTV with footage currently being investigated by Longford Gardaí.
Posting about the incident to their social media, they wrote, “As a community organisation supporting women and children in crisis and providing a safe environment for our service users and staff, this is what we were faced with yesterday morning - vandalism on our premises in Ardnacassa over the weekend.”
“We have CCTV footage and this is with the Gardaí at present who have been very responsive to this issue.”
“However, it is saddening that the Gardaí are having to respond to call outs over petty vandalism. Also, repairing the damage to our creche gardens will have a severe impact on us financially.”
“We cannot understand why individuals think that it is ok to behave this way and we are disgusted at the people who did this. The damage occurred between the hours of 14:40 and 17:00 on Saturday and 11:00 and 16:00 on Sunday.”
“We thank our hard working staff for ensuring that the areas were cleaned and made risk free promptly and we can continue to run safe services and we thank all those in the community who support us. Shame on those that engage in this destructive, appalling behaviour.”
Anyone with information is asked to contact Longford Garda Station on 043 3350570