A Mayo farmer has spoken of his relief after sheep handling equipment stolen from his yard was recovered.
Around 1:00a.m on Monday, January 3, John McHale discovered that all of the equipment in his yard at Coolcronan, close to Knockmore village, had been stolen.
The farmer had been gathering the “extensive sheep handling set-up” manufactured by Ritchie in Scotland for over 10 years.
Those alleged to have been responsible for the theft used a trailer in the yard to transport the equipment through Knockmore, where it is believed they were captured on local CCTV cameras.
It is understood that the theft occurred between 7:00p.m on Sunday, January 2 and 1:00a.m on Monday (January 3).
Sheep equipment
An Garda Síochána has confirmed to Agriland that the property stolen from the farmer’s yard has been recovered.
“Gardaí attached to Ballina and Foxford with the assistance of the local detective units did recover all the property stolen,” a garda spokesperson said.
Investigations into the theft are ongoing and nobody has yet been arrested in connection with the incident.
John McHale told Agriland that he is expecting to be reunited with the stolen equipment once the investigation concludes and he thanked gardaí for their work.
The farmer said that he experienced “a lot of stress” and “a huge sense of loss” after the robbery.
However, McHale said that there was a huge response from the local community and marts in the wake of the theft, including farmers offering their equipment for use.
“There was nothing left in the yard, the yard was empty and it was impossible to do anything. But people were very good to come and offer trailers, equipment and help in any way they could. It was fantastic.”
The farmer said that people had contacted him from across the country offering help and support.
He also said that local businesses volunteered their CCTV footage to help the garda investigation and shared the appeal for information on their social media. Following the incident, McHale believes that CCTV cameras should be erected on all public buildings.