Suspicious activity and securing your house

It has been noted that there has been a number of suspicious vans in the Riverwood Estate in the last few months. After checking with the Gardai some of these vehicles have been suspected of being involved in burglaries. It is suspected these vans are driving around the estate looking for immediate opportunities or targets for future opportunities. Burglaries can take place at any time day or night. One such van was noted in the estate on both Saturday and Sunday of last week, this was a White Ford Transit – Reg 01-OY-1937.

We would urge all residents to be aware of activity on their road and keep an eye out for any suspicous activity. Please contact the Gardai in Blanchardstown if you see anything on either 666-7020/666-7000 and please let us know also. Do not hesitate to ring 999 if a burglary is in progress.

We would encourage all residents to consider the following:

  • To get their alarms serviced and ensure that they are switched on whenever you leave the house, also get into the habit of turning the alarm on at night and ensuring your car door is locked every night.
  • Consider an exterior sensor light that comes on for any activity in your driveway/garden as a deterrent.
  • Not to leave any bags for clothes collection outside. It is suspected that the vans used for clothing collection are also used for criminal activity. There are clothes collection centres in Coolmine recycling centre, Tesco in Roselawn, Superquinn, Dunnes and the Castleknock Football and Hurling club also collect clothes. It is also suspected that some people who deliver leaflets at night are also involved in stealing from cars.
  • Consider where you leave your bin – these can be used for access to the back garden for burglars.
  • Consider an antisnap cylinder for your door locks at both front and back doors. It can take a few seconds for a burglar to snap the cylinder and gain access to a house. See images below of the front door handle and cylinder which was broken recently as part of a burglary in Riverwood.
  • Consider the shrubs in your garden and whether they provide cover for anyone trying to access your side door. It is recommended that shrubs in the front garden be no higher than 1 metre.
  • Always look for a local reference for anyone coming to your door advertising any work (you can use the Tradesmen section of our website which only get listed based on reference from someone in the estate – updates welcome from anyone you wish to recommend).

Other reference material can be found at the Garda crime prevention website.

If anyone has any queries on this please let us know.