NO CATTLE THEFTS IN FIVE MONTHS BUT GARDA INVESTIGATIONS CONTINUE

By Cianna McNally

Although there have been no cattle thefts in counties Cavan and Monaghan in the last five months, investigations by gardaí into the issue are very much ongoing as Superintendent Fergus Treanor from the Cavan/Monaghan Division highlighted at a meeting this week.
Superintendent Treanor gave a detailed presentation on cattle thefts relating to both counties at a meeting of Co Monaghan Joint Policing Committee on Tuesday.
Between January 2013 and April 2015, 225 cattle and 295 sheep, with a total value of almost €124,000, were stolen from the Cavan/Monaghan areas. Twenty files had been prepared and would be submitted to the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) One person had been charged with the handling of stolen cattle and altered tags had also been recovered by gardaí. Part of the presentation included grim photographs of illegal abbatoirs in Cavan and Monaghan.
The Superintendent outlined how most of these incidents happened at locations between Monaghan Town and Carrickmacross just off the N2. Admitting that the cattle theft issue caught gardai a bit by surprise in 2013, Supt Treanor said that gardai had upskilled and now, amongst other measures, immediately carried out DNA testing on all animals recovered so as to be certain of their identity.

ACTION TAKEN
Supt Treanor provided an insight into joint action taken by both An Garda Siochana and members of PSNI in Northern Ireland and confirmed that there were no incidents of cattle theft reported in the last five months.
The gardai approach to the issue included …