A WORRYING trend continues to escalate as more and more thieves seize the opportunity to target motorists stopped in traffic or at traffic lights.
At 11.15am on January 2, a woman’s handbag was snatched when a youth opened the passenger door of the car,
grabbed a handbag from the passenger seat and then ran off. The incident, which took place on Mulgrave Street, happened so fast the woman was unable to provide a description of the thief.
An elderly lady returning to her car at St. John’s Square had just sat into the drivers seat when a male approached her on a bicycle, opened the passenger door and grabbed her handbag from the seat. He then cycled off in the direction of Garryowen. He was described as being in his twenties, thin build with a gaunt face, and wearing a white hoodie and black pants. Stories are currently circulating in Dublin of more serious incidences of this crime, where passenger windows have actually been smashed in efforts to snatch handbags from the passenger seat of a car.
Gardai insist that people driving alone be more careful with their belongings to avoid such crimes. Doors should always be locked and all handbags kept out of sight.
Incidents of bag snatching from pedestrians continue to occur, with a Nokia 5310 phone and several credit cards, having been snatched on New Years Day, at around 8.30pm, while the owner was walking on Pa Healy Road. The perpetrator in this case was described as being 5’7” in height, skinny build and was wearing a navy hoodie with horizontal stripes.
If anybody has any information that may help the gardai in their investigations into these crimes, please call the crime office on Henry St. on 212400.
