A farmer is appealing for information in relation to a quantity of fertilizer which was stolen from a farm in Co. Kildare over the Easter weekend.

On Easter Sunday morning – between 9:00am and 10:00am – five half-tonne bags of Gouldings 10-10-20 fertilizer were taken in a raid on an out-farm near Castledermot.

Witnesses saw a modern-looking Massey Ferguson tractor – with a front loader and bale fork – as well as an oldish red dump trailer driving to and from the farm in question with the fertilizer loaded.

The dump trailer was distinctive in that it had a long sloped back and may be “whitish looking” from behind. It also had one good industrial-threaded tyre on the rear right-hand side and a nearly bald tyre on the rear left-hand side, according to the victim of the theft.

Anyone with information, or who may have seen the vehicle with the load in question, is urged to contact Gardai.

Speaking on the matter, the farmer said: “It’s not the value, it’s more the concern; both for me and other farmers – it’s the same as taking livestock. You could leave nothing on an out-farm, away from home or even in your own yard if that is going to be happening.”

Scoped

The owner said that he did not believe someone local actually stole the fertilizer, but suspected someone local had scoped the ground and tipped off another person about it.

The farmer noted that two of his neighbours had witnessed the thief passing. He said: “One saw him going over the bridge up over the motorway; and then the other neighbour – who was on the other side of the road out feeding cattle – saw him going back, with the bags of fertiliser in the dump trailer.”

The owner also noted that the driver did not appear to know where he was going.

“He turned up too soon; he turned up a wrong lane first of all, according to a neighbour.

He went up to a gravel quarry – he had to turn and come back; it was the next lane he had to go up, so he hadn’t seen it himself. Someone else had put him in touch with it.

“The funny thing is he closed the gate on his way back out – he’d opened and closed it coming back out, so he probably reckoned we wouldn’t be back over there for a few days.”

The farmer said that even the brand of tractor was unusual for the region.

“There would be very few Masseys in the area – it’s just New Holland and John Deere country, so I reckon myself the tractor had come 10, 15 or 20 miles.

“It’s a concern going forward; I never had any trouble there in 30 years – this is the first time that something like that happened. It’ll be hard for lads to work with out-farms.”

Castledermot Garda Station can be contacted on: 059-9144112.

Members of An Garda Siochana are currently investigating the fertilizer theft.