Crack Garda unit to join crime battle

In the wake of two armed robberies in Meath where staff members were threatened, Garda resources to tackle serious crime will be boosted in the coming weeks with the rollout of the Gardai's new Regional Response Unit. The new unit is to be based in Mullingar but will be deployed throughout the region, including County Meath, in response to serious crime incidents as they happen. Specialist pilot units were launched in Limerick and Cork last year to combat an upsurge in gang crime in the region. The new regional unit, the equivalent of a US police SWAT team, is a second-tier firearms response squad, featuring uniformed Gardaí trained in special weapons and tactics, which can be put to use during a critical incident involving firearms or hostage scenarios. They are heavily armed and sport tactical outfits and protective gear. Already under Operation Anville, the Meath Division has been operating high-visibility checkpoints around the county, involving uniformed and plainclothes armed Gardai, with a focus on crime prevention and to curb the increase in crime brought about by the recession. There were two armed robberies in the county last week where a rural post office and a bank were targeted. The robberies come just weeks after a failed raid on an ATM machine in Athboy using a digger, and an armed raid on a filling station at Clonee. At around 11.45am last Thursday, three masked men, one of whom was carrying a single-barrelled shotgun, entered Rathmolyon Post Office, threatened the female staff member behind the counter and demanded cash. There was also a female customer in the post office at the time. One of the men was carrying a hammer and smashed the glass partition at the teller's desk, while the third unarmed man jumped the counter and took money from the safe that had recently come off the timelock. It is understood the men made off with a sum of money in the region of €20,000. They made their getaway in a black 05 KE-registered Toyota Landcruiser, driven by a fourth man, that was stolen in Mullingar two days previously. The vehicle was found abandoned a mile away at Castetown. Gardai are appealing for witnesses to the incident and urge anyone who noticed anything suspicious in the area around that time or just before to contact Summerhill Garda Station on (046) 955 7002, Trim Garda Station (046) 943 1222 or the Garda Confidential Telephone Line 1800 666 111. The previous evening, the Bank of Ireland branch in Oldcastle was targeted and Gardai are searching for the three men who carried out the robbery. The raid happened between 4.30pm and 5pm when the three raiders, wearing navy blue boiler suits and balaclavas and carrying iron bars, entered the premises via the rear and escaped with an undisclosed sum of money. According to Gardai, they had already cut through the bars on a window at the rear of the premises to gain entry. The raiders are believed to have assaulted more than one employee of staff during the course of the robbery in which a substantial quantity of cash was stolen. The manager of the bank was upstairs at the time of the raid and was able to observe what was happening on the bank's internal closed-circuit television system (CCTV) and immediately alerted Gardai. The gang left by the back of the bank branch, going through the rear car park of the Napper Arms Hotel and into the Ard Frail housing estate where a getaway car was waiting. This car is described as being a dark-coloured saloon and is believed to have travelled in the direction of Castlepollard. Oldcastle Gardai are anxious to speak to anyone who was in the area at the time of the robbery and who may be in a position to assist in their investigation. Gardai believe that the raiders may have been in the area in the days prior to the robbery. Anyone with information is asked to contact Kells Garda Station on (046) 928 0820, Oldcastle Gardai (049) 854 1102 or the Garda Confidential Telephone Line 1800 666 111. While there have been a number of robberies and attempted robberies in Meath in recent months. Superintendent Michael Devine of Navan Garda Station said they had not seen an "escalation in robberies" as a result of the current economic climate compared to normal times and they were not aware of an increasing trend. Supt Devine said these incidents had been "two nasty robberies where people had been threatened" but said there has been no significant increase in robberies as yet and pointed out that the armed patrols and checkpoints are controlling matters to a certain level. "Meath is a large county. We cannot have people everywhere all the time and, in these difficult times, we are doing what we can. We are focusing on areas that are potential targets. The object of the exercise is prevention, having high visibility and armed personnel," he said. He added that this would be stepped up in the coming weeks with the new Garda Regional Response Unit in place in Mullingar. This unit involves uniformed officers who patrol as normal but who can change into tactical gear and arm themselves rapidly if an incident occurs. Supt Devine said that in cases with crime in Meath, the culprits head back towards the city. Gardai can anticipate this with patrols and take advantage if something happens. While Supt Devine said there has not been a significant increase in robberies, he said that crime in general such as burglaries and car thefts are on the rise. He is urging people to become more security conscious by not leaving valuables in sight in their vehicles or leaving items on view in their homes or car keys on their hall table, for example.