Gardai step up action to stop armed raiders

Gardai have pledged to step up armed checkpoints across the county in the wake of the latest raid on a Meath post office last week. Balrath Post Office was targeted for the second time in six weeks shortly before 11am last Thursday morning, and thanks to the bravery of an elderly couple, the raiders fled the scene with only a minimal amount of cash. The armed raiders appear to have panicked when they were confronted by the elderly husband of the postmistress and made off in the direction of Ashbourne. According to Superintendent Michael Devine of Navan Garda Station, two men in their 20s entered Balrath Post Office at 10.47am. One man was wearing a balaclava and other man"s face was concealed with a scarf. One of the men had a gun and threatened the postmistress. They smashed the glass hatch using the butt of the gun and one of the men jumped across the counter and pushed past the postmistress. She quickly alerted her husband who was out the back and he bravely tackled the gunman who jumped back across the counter and the men fled the scene. They only managed to get a small amount of cash that consisted mostly of coins. According to Supt Devine, the whole ordeal was over in about 25 seconds but he described it as a 'serious incident'. No-one was injured but Supt Devine said it was a 'serious shock for all involved'. A man who was outside the post office gave Gardai a description of the men and it is understood that they fled the scene in either a light-coloured Nissan Almera or a Toyota Avensis and Gardai believe it was most likely a Dublin-registered Avensis. The car travelled along the N2 in the direction of Ashbourne. Gardai have carried out a technical examination of the scene and are examining CCTV footage. This is the second time the couple have confronted raiders in recent weeks. Just last month, the post office was also targeted by two men, one of whom smashed the glass panel with a lump hammer. Two men were arrested in relation to that raid and Gardai have prepared a file for the DPP and the men will be coming before the courts in due course. Supt Devine said there are a lot of people out there 'looking for a few bob' and that, being out on its own, the post office is an 'easy target'. Just last week, a Ballivor shop owner had a lucky escape while he was locking up thanks to his quick actions. He saw two men approaching wearing balaclavas and immediately went back inside the shop and locked the door. And three weeks ago the post office at Blackcastle, Navan, was also subjected to an armed raid. While incidents of robberies, burglaries and similar crimes are on the increase, Supt Devine said that given Meath"s proximity to Dublin, crime is 'not increasing at an alarming scale'. In February, the Meath Chronicle outlined the measures being taken by the Meath Garda Division to combat the increased crime rates that come with a recession and these initiatives include high-visibility armed Garda checkpoints and an increased Garda presence on the street. Supt Devine said the measures had been a success to that extent that, while crime has increased, given Meath"s proximity to Dublin city, the increase is 'not too bad'. He said: 'Crime is not increasing at an alarming scale, though obviously we don"t want any robberies or crime and if we can prevent it, we will.' He added the checkpoints and other measures to prevent crime had been 'reasonably successful' but said that 'even if you put a Garda on every corner, there would still be crime'. Supt Devine said that Gardai had intercepted a number of crimes in recent times thanks to the measures. A group from Tallaght was responsible for a spate of burglaries in the Slane area and Gardai have apprehended them. Another man whom Gardai believe was responsible for 12 burglaries in the area has also been caught. Supt Devine said Gardai are doing the best they can with the resources they have and will continue with these measures, but added that with the 'best will in the world there would still be crime here and there'.