Youths arrested following citywide crime spree
Four male teenagers have been arrested in connection with the theft of a car in the city last Friday night and an ensuing series of burglaries and acts of criminal damage across the city.
A black Nissan Micra was stolen from Connolly Place at around 7pm on Friday whilst the owner was removing items from the boot and carrying them indoors. Five minutes later, a red laptop was stolen from a house at Hennessy’s Road.
The owner was upstairs in bed and heard the front door closing. When she went down to investigate, she looked out the door and reported seeing “a car full of young fellas”.
The same black Nissan Micra with a number of males on board was seen in the vicinity of the Williamstown Community Child Care Centre at 8.20pm, around the time that the Centre was broken into.
At 9.15pm, Style Parlour (Unit 4) at the Waterford Business Park was broken into and some cash was taken.
The roller doors of the premises were rammed and there was also an attempt to pull the doors off the premises. About half an hour later, K Sport in the Northern Industrial Estate was broken into.
Again, this premises had been rammed, with significant damage caused. Some cash and two till drawers were taken.
Later that night, a Garda patrol unit investigating the above incidents came across the Nissan Micra at the Lacken Wood Industrial Estate.
They heard talking from within the premises and requested assistance. Three youths fled the scene, two through an upstairs window.
Two of the youths received ankle/foot injuries during the attempted getaway. A third youth was apprehended in the car park, whilst a fourth was arrested in the premises. All the youths are juveniles.
The stolen car, which had been extensively damaged, was recovered at the scene and taken in for technical examination. The scene at Lacken Wood Industrial Estate was also preserved.
Following detention at Waterford Garda Station, two of the youths were taken to University Hospital Waterford for suspected injuries to the foot/ankle. Following questioning, all four were released pending a file to the DPP
In other crime news, Gardaí are investigating several other burglaries across the city in recent days. Entry was gained to McGuire’s Garden Centre shortly after 1.30am on Monday via a front window.
Cash, gold rings and a shotgun were stolen from a house at Lismore Park during a break-in on Sunday night. Entry was gained through the back door, between 6pm and 7.45pm.
A house at Rockshire Terrace, Ferrybank, was ransacked during a burglary some time on Sunday. A Waterford Crystal vase was taken from the house.
Between 4pm and 8pm last Wednesday, four laptops and an Ipad were stolen from a house in Lismore Park occupied by a group of students. An Ipad 4, an Ipod, a Toshiba laptop and some Brazilian currency were taken from an apartment at Penrose Court on the same day, between 7am and 4.30pm.
