Gardaí have confirmed that three people were arrested after they responded to an “incident of alleged trespassing” on lands in north Co. Dublin.
One adult male aged in his late teens has since been charged and is due to appear before a sitting of Balbriggan District Court at a later date.
Two male juveniles aged in their teens were released and have been referred to the Youth Diversion Programme, gardaí said.
Trespassing
Separately community gardaí in north Co. Dublin are currently taking part in a series of rural patrols to support members of the farming community who have voiced their concerns about repeated incidents of trespassing in the area.
It is understood that in recent weeks gardaí, in addition to the arrests that have been made, have also seized lamping equipment and a number of animals.
According to the Irish Farmers’ Association (IFA) “strong community engagement” between gardaí and local farmers in north Co. Dublin and in particular a dedicated WhatsApp group is making a real difference on the ground.
Farmers have shared alerts on the WhatsApp group if they are concerned about individuals who may be trespassing on their land or if there is any suspicious activity on their farm.
According to Alice Doyle, the deputy president of the IFA, this partnership approach between gardaí and farmers in north Co. Down is the “perfect model” as to how a community works together to deal with issues like rural crime and trespassing.
Doyle would very much like this model to be rolled out nationally but she also believes that more needs to be done to tackle these issues, such as the establishment of a new initiative like the UK’s National Rural Crime Network.
“Farmers in north Co. Dublin have a really good relationship with the gardaí and the guards with the farmers and they are constantly in communication so that they know what is happening.
“We would like to see a new national lead on agricultural crime established by the next minister for justice – we believe this is a priority.
“They have it in Northern Ireland, they have it in Scotland, Wales and England – if we had that kind of operation here then for example any kind of equipment that was stolen would be immediately reported into the national lead on agricultural crime, which could in turn alert every garda division around the country,” Doyle said.
She said that a mini version of this is “already working really well in north Co. Dublin”.
“There are all these community groups who are working really hard to keep an eye out for any agricultural crime that is happening and reporting it to the gardaí who are circulating this information really well in north Co. Dublin.
“But what we need is a new national lead on agricultural crime – the amount of money that is lost to agricultural crime is huge, as well as the threat to animals and humans.
“People are insecure in their own homes – many people are living under threat in rural Ireland,” the IFA deputy president said.