Carlow ranks middle in number of burglary offenders before court
This photo is used for illustrative purposes only
MORE than 30 people in Carlow came before local courts on burglary charges in the first nine months of 2025, according to figures provided to Ireland South MEP and former barrister Cynthia Ní Mhurchú by the Irish Courts Service.
This puts Carlow in the middle of the road in a ranking of the number of burglaries per district court area.
Nationally, 1,187 people came before the district courts across Ireland for 1,771 cases of burglary between January and September 2025. A further 347 people were sent forward for trial in the circuit court for burglary offences during this period.
The figures point to a relatively small group of repeat offenders that are responsible for a disproportionate share of burglary offences. In the circuit court, 529 offenders were tried for 729 burglary cases.
Gardaí have called for people to stop posting holiday pictures on social media, which advertises that they are not at home. Neighbours should also keep an eye out for suspicious vehicles or activity nearby, especially in very rural parts of the country during the dark winter months, which is a peak time for the offence of burglary.
MEP Ms Ní Mhurchú has called for an end to the practice of letting burglars out on temporary release from prison. Thirty-eight burglars were on temporary release as of 23 June 2025, according to figures provided by the Irish Prison Service. She has also called for more targeted community supports, including a doubling of funding under the Community Safety Fund, more funding for community CCTV and consideration to be given to expanding the Seniors’ Alert Scheme to include grants for house alarms.
According to Ms Ní Mhurchú, community leaders she has met don’t know about the Community Safety Fund, which redistributes proceeds of crime seized by the Criminal Assets Bureau (CAB) and An Garda Síochána back into communities for things like diversion, drug awareness and restorative justice initiatives.
Ms Ní Mhurchú asked the Department of Justice to inform community groups of the €4m funding allocation for 2026, consider doubling it and advise politicians and community leaders when the funding call opens for applications.
