Quad bike thefts ‘big business’ for gangs

A series of quad bike thefts from farmyards in recent days has prompted a garda investigation, prompted after three properties were targeted in Delvin and Crookedwood overnight on Monday and Tuesday of last week.

A fourth premises at Lynn, Mullingar, was hit on Wednesday when a scrambler motorbike was stolen.

It is “big business” says the crime prevention officer attached to Mullingar Garda Station, Detective Sergeant John McWalter.

He said an organised gang is behind the operation, which is happening “all over Westmeath and in neighbouring counties”, and he is urging farmers to do everything in their power to secure their properties.

John Fagan, a sheep farmer in Crookedwood, was one of the injured parties. His new Honda 500cc quad, worth €12,000, was stolen from his farmyard on Tuesday night around midnight.

Known for bringing RTÉ’s Big Week On The Farm to Westmeath, John captured clear footage of the culprits on CCTV.

It shows two men wearing hoodies crossing the farm yard on foot, taking the quad and pushing it out the gate.

Most likely, according to Det Sgt John McWalter, the culprits had a van waiting nearby to transport the quad, which will be one of those sold outside the country “within days”.

“It’s an epidemic – this gang is responsible for hundreds of thefts, this is not just a local problem, this is happening right across the country,” said John Fagan.

“It was all caught on CCTV. They were very brazen about it and obviously they had their homework done, as I have everything locked up at night.

“All the gates with road access are locked, and there’s CCTV everywhere. They had to come up through the back of the farm, up through the fields, to access the yard – this was well planned out.”

The night before, on Monday, a quad bike was stolen from a shed in Clonleam, Delvin, at around 11pm. Meanwhile, on the same night as John Fagan’s premises was targeted, another quad was stolen from a farmyard in Crowenstown, Delvin, at around 2am.

Then on Wednesday, a scrambler bike was stolen from a shed at Lynn in Mullingar.

“An organised crime gang have to be behind this as there’s hundreds of quads being stolen all over,” said John Fagan.

“It’s not just a couple lads stealing a few quad bikes here and there, these guys know what they’re doing.

“It’s a pretty expensive piece of equipment and it’s a vital piece of machinery for me because I’m a sheep farmer and that’s how I get around.

“But I would be reluctant to go out and just buy another one because they are being stolen all over the country. It’s almost a running joke at this stage, it’s happening so often. It’s not just a local thing.”

He is urging everyone to be more vigilant, to get involved in community alert schemes, and to contact the gardaí if they notice anything suspicious.

“We need to be more vigilant, to be more watchful, because this needs to stop.

“People say ‘you’ve got insurance, just go and get another one’, but what’s the point? The insurance companies won’t want to insure them any more if this continues.”