Winkle pickers part of ‘marauding gang’ targeting houses

Two Latvian nationals who were part of a ‘marauding gang’ who stole a car after burgling a home in Kilmeena while the owner slept claimed they needed money to return home.

Ilmars Kalvans (24), with an address in Dromore West, Co Sligo, and Raivo Keiris, with an address in Claggan, Ballycroy, appeared before Westport District Court last Thursday where they pleaded guilty to burglary and stealing a car from a home in Clooneen, Kilmeena, on April 17, 2015.

The two men were working as winkle pickers in Ballycroy at the time, and when arrested, claimed they burgled the house to pay for flights home to Latvia. Judge Mary Devins said they were part of a ‘marauding gang’ looking to steal from people’s homes and that such actions were striking fear in people living in rural areas.

Garda Martin Kelly told the court he received a call on April 17 from Ballymote Garda Station regarding a Volkswagen Golf which was seen near Enniscrone and registered to Michael Kelly from Kilmeena. He called to Mr Kelly’s home at 7am and was told the car was stolen with the keys, along with two laptops and a radio. Garda Kelly explained that four men were seen in the car at 6.30am in Co Sligo and were travelling with another person who was driving a Volvo. They were acting suspiciously and their activities were reported to gardaí in Ballymote.

Following enquiries into the ownership of the Volvo, the two laptops were recovered from a house in Ballymote as well as the stolen car. CCTV footage in Westport showed the Volvo entering the town from Castlebar at 2.01am on the night the burglary took place.

Elephant in the room

On April 23, the two defendants made contact with the gardaí and presented themselves for questioning at Ballina Garda Station.

They both admitted to burgling the house and taking the car. Mr Kalvans told gardaí that they were working as winkle pickers and only getting paid enough to cover food and rent.

He said they wanted to go back to Latvia so they looked for an empty house to rob. The court heard they entered through an open window in the garage and entered the house through an open door adjoining the garage.

The court was told they had no previous convictions in Ireland or in any other EU country. Garda Kelly told Mr Dermot Morahan, solicitor for the two defendants, that without their cooperation it would be a difficult case to prosecute.

Mr Morahan said his clients worked as winkle pickers for another Latvian man who has left the jurisdiction. He said on a good day they would €75 a day and were now working for themselves in Sligo.

When asked by Judge Devins about the ‘elephant in the room’ which was the burglary, Mr Morahan said his clients had no good excuse other than they were not getting paid enough to return home. Judge Devins said she had difficulty believing that as flights to Latvia were ‘not that expensive’.

Community service

In sentencing the two defendants she said she was considering a custodial sentence but was obliged to consider if they were suitable for community service because of their previous good record.

She sentenced both Mr Keiris and Mr Kalvans to 200 hours community service in lieu of six months’ imprisonment for the burglary. Mr Kalvans was given a extra 40 hours in lieu of three months for the unauthorised taking of the car.