Following another spate of handbag thefts from cars in recent days, Gardai in Fermoy have renewed their warning to motorists not to leave valuables in their vehicles.

Two such thefts occurred last Saturday evening, May 4th. In both cases the car owners were at evening Mass. The first incident occurred in Mitchelstown. A passenger window was smashed and a smartphone taken. The second incident, which was almost identical, occurred in Kilbehenny. A window in the car was also broken and the handbag, with a sum of cash, was taken.

Two more such incidents occurred in recent days. The first was a break-in to a car parked in the grounds of St Patrick’s Community Hospital in Fermoy. A handbag with a small amount of cash in it was taken. The fourth handbag snatch from a car occurred when the car was parked outside the swimming pool in Fermoy.

“It’s not just the loss of the handbags, their contents and any money, but the cost of having to repair broken car windows,” a Garda spokesman pointed out as he reiterated the need for motorists to take their valuables with them when they leaving their cars parked up.