€3,000 stolen from car in Athlone while owner was at Mass

Some €3,000 in cash was stolen from a car in a smash and grab raid recently while the owner was at Mass.

The incident happened outside St Mary's Church, Athlone between 11.30am and noon on Sunday, August 13.

It has prompted Athlone Gardai to plead with motorists not to leave any cash or handbags in their vehicles, even for a short period, or other valuables on display.

'We're really asking people not to have any valuables on view in their cars and never to leave cash in their vehicle,' Sgt Andrew Haran said this week as part of a fresh appeal to drivers in the Athlone area in relation to the smash and grab style incidents.

In the incident on August 13 outside the church, a Tory Burch handbag and Michael Kors wallet were also taken from the car parked in the vicinity of St Mary's Church.

Sgt Andrew Haran said there have been a number of thefts from cars in recent times and he asked the public to be extra vigilant in relation to this type of opportunistic crime. 

He explained that they have also raised the issue with priests in St Mary's parish in a bid to heighten awareness among massgoers. As a result, the parish issued advice to parishioners about security.

Another car was broken into on Saturday, August 12 at Rosard in Monksland, where a tablet computer was taken. Also over the course of August 12 and 13, the window of a vehicle was smashed in Bloomfield Drive, Coosan, and over €170 taken, while just last weekend a handbag was stolen with assorted items from a car parked outside Athlone Regional Sports Centre.

Again, the window was smashed to gain entry, sometime between 5pm and 6.30pm on Sunday (August 19).