Mowers stolen from Pitch & Putt Club

Thieves broke into the storage facility at St Bridget's Pitch & Putt Club last night and stole two John Deere greens mowers similar to the above, writes Brian Byrne. A hedge trimmer was also taken.

It's the second time for this to happen this year, and the club is asking for anyone who might have seen something suspicious to contact them and An Garda.

The Club only took delivery of the second mower recently. To replace the stolen items with new machines would cost €7,500 each, but the Club's machines were second-hand, and valued at around €5,000.

The club is hosting a major competition over the weekend, and this latest theft doesn't make having the top-class facilities in best order for this.

It's a club that gives a lot to the community, and no doubt there's going to be serious anger over the crime. The last theft was in April. This time the thieves cut through a very secure external bar, then used a vehicle to pull the steel doors open, bending them in the process. After that the stolen machines would have had to be lifted over internal barriers, and taken away in something like a medium-sized van.

Pictured at the Club this morning are Liam Sherry, Christy Hannon and Christy Sweeney. Below is the remains of a towing rope which may have been used by the vehicle to pull the doors of the storage facility.