Galway Senator Ollie Crowe is calling for tougher sentencing following a spree of home burglaries in the Carnmore and Claregalway areas.
Senator Crowe said that 14 homes in Carnmore and Claregalway had been hit by burglars over the course of 10 days around Christmas.
He said that all of these have seemed to follow a “similar pattern”, with two or three people carrying out surveillance before being collected 10/15 minutes later.
The home in question will be broken into shortly afterwards if it seems to be empty, and then “ransacked” very quickly.
The burglaries mostly seem to happen around 5pm to 8pm in the evening.
Senator Crowe said that he has requested that Gardaà engage in “enhanced patrols” of the area.
“We also need to bring in tougher sentences for burglars and end this nonsense of repeat burglars getting very short sentences and I will be raising this matter with government ministers,” Ollie Crowe said.
Anyone who witnesses suspicious activity in their area should contact Mill Street Garda Station at 091 538 000, or call 999 in an emergency.