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Get Commercial Property Security from ESP: Gardai braced for surge of raids by burglars on shuttered firms

The national anti-burglary unit has been ‘beefed up’, with more specialist detectives and vehicles now monitoring closed commercial premises around the country under the Garda’s Operation Thor.

Due to a major decrease in home burglaries as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, gardai are bracing themselves for a spike in break-ins at closed shops and premises. While this has yet to materialise, gardai confirmed that the force is taking pre-emptive measures to prepare for it.

A spokesman told the Irish Daily Mail: ‘At a time of significant reduction in the number of domestic burglaries, the focus of Operation Thor, our national anti-burglary operation led by Garda Special Crime Operations, will be on burglary prevention at business and commercial premises.’ Well-placed sources say that armed members of the Special Detective Unit (SDU) and the National Bureau of Criminal Investigation (NBCI) have now been assigned to assist the national anti-burglary unit.

Within the past week, there has been an increase of gardai in high-powered cars, designed to chase gangs of burglars, patrolling the country’s motorways.

‘The well-known burglary gangs are getting frustrated, they can’t hit the houses much because everyone is home. It hasn’t happened yet but we are braced for a major surge in the closed businesses all over the country being targeted. So we’ve more units in cars out now patrolling at night-time. If the criminals see we’re out in force, it will put them off.’ Despite no notable increase in closed premises being targeted at present, Garda headquarters confirmed that one break-in took place on Sunday.

At 4pm, two men wearing masks and gloves broke into a phone shop on the Main Street in Kinnegad in Co. Westmeath.

The pair stole mobile phones, accessories and laptops, believed to be worth over €2,000. The duo then fled in a car towards the M4 and have not yet been apprehended.

The source said: ‘A lot of the shops closed around the country have a lot of highly lucrative products still inside. These are the shops the gangs will now hone in on and try rob.’ Meanwhile, despite a massive drop in home break-ins, gardai are on ‘high alert’ for a well-known Dublin burglary gang attempting – and failing – to carry out residential robberies.

This gang, based in Tallaght, have been gathering in counties Kildare, Meath, Laois and Offaly in recent days. The Traveller gang is driving around in a blue Volkswagen Golf, which is owned by a well-known drug dealer, based in Kilrush in Co. Clare.

The gang has been scoping out houses in the Johnstownbridge and Kilcock area of Kildare, as well as Clonard, Co. Meath, and Stradbally in Co. Laois.

The gang are also suspects for two burglaries at vacant properties in Errill and Ballybrophy in Co. Laois on Monday afternoon.

A source said: ‘The concern with this crew, and other gangs like them, is that soon they will get fed up. They want to earn money. The fear is that they’ll carry out aggravated burglaries, using violence to get what they want.’

In some instances, they’ve been knocking on doors asking about a ‘lost dog’ to try and determine how many people are home and if there are any valuables in the house.

As security professionals, ESP Security can help advise owners of commercial premises how to best secure their buildings and inventory. It’s more than just telling you to upgrade your CCTV cameras and alarm systems. 

Besides making certain you have fully-functional intrusion alarms, with both ringing alarm coverage or an alarm monitoring service, we can also discuss & advise you of the value of adding shatterproof windows (perhaps splitting the cost with the landlord or property manager) and/or installing window bars or grilles. Ensuring all bases are covered. 

We can also carry out an assessment of your current security cameras. Too many small businesses have outdated systems that don’t save the imagery to a network; where some cameras work and some don’t; fake cameras (to save money); bad interior or exterior lighting; or poorly-positioned cameras that make it difficult to identify the thieves.

We’re living in unique times, where people under economic stress do bad things.  ESP Security are here to help and advice and do what we can to help business owners protect what they have.

Contact ESP Security today for more information and a quote

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