This article is from page 19 of the 2014-05-27 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 19 JPG
THE ACTIONS of unknown thieves who stole a set of toddler swings from the Crusheen playground have been described as “despicable” by the local community.
The Crusheen Playground Committee believe that the swings, which were taken at some time between Tuesday evening, May 20, and Thursday evening, May 24, were deliberately targeted by criminals – rather than as a random act of criminality.
Sean Nihill of the playground committee says people in the area are devastated, not by the value of the items stolen, but that anyone would steal from children in a premeditated and planned way.
“They screwed out both the infant swings.
“There was no damage done to the swings and they would have needed specialist equipment to do it.
“It is our opinion that it was a premeditated thing, they would have gone there to do it. It’s despicable,” he told The Clare People. “Two members of the playground committee were there when I arrived on the scene and we reported it to the gardaí and they say they will look into it.
“It’s not the value of the crime and what was stolen, it’s the impact of it. What kind of person would steal from children like this?
“What happens now when parents come to the playground with their toddlers? How do they explain to their children that some bad man stole their swing?
“How do you do that? It’s a big loss to the community, especially to children arriving to find swings missing,” he added.
The playground, which was officially opened in November of 2012 after years of local campaigning and fundraising, attracts larger crowds of children from Crusheen as well as from the wider area – with families travelling to the facility from east Clare and south Galway.
The playground is surrounded on each side with a small, four foot high, wall and there is currently no way of locking and completely securing the playground at night.
The local playground committee is appealing to whoever took the swings to return them as soon as possible.
Gardaí in Ennis are also investigating the incident.