Louth pensioner (85) won’t be intimidated by brazen burglary thugs after home ransacked while she was at Mass

• 7h ago

A defiant pensioner has pledged not to let the thugs who ransacked her north Louth home while she was at evening Mass on Saturday drive her from her home.

Kay McKevitt, who celebrates her 85th birthday on Wednesday, has said that she will not be driven by her home by the callous thugs who caused thousands of Euros of damage as they pulled her house apart looking for cash.

“She was obviously shaken but she’s determined that she won’t be driven out of her home,” her daughter Clodagh told The Argus.

The close-knit Cooley community has been rallying around Kay and the residents of three other houses that were all broken into on Saturday evening.

Gardai have confirmed that they are investigating a number of burglaries which occurred in Riverstown and Greenore on the evening of June 10. No arrests have been made so far and investigations are continuing.

“It was absolute devastation,” Clodagh said, describing the scene in the house to which her mother returned after Mass on Saturday evening.

The raiders, who got in by smashing a patio window, pulled the house apart as they searched for money.

“Every single drawer was open, her clothes were scattered on the floor, and they broke the door of the cooker as they even searched in the vent above. They even pulled the fridge apart. They looked in every single nook and cranny but left without taking the television or other electrical equipment as they were looking for money.”

Damage was also caused to the house as the intruders attempted to cover their fingerprints by spraying bleach around the place.

“We’ve had to wash all her clothes as they were covered with bleach,” said Clodagh. “It’s a total violation of people’s personal property.”

She praised the Gardai for their response and said that the reaction of the local community has been “incredible”.

“We’ve had hundreds of people calling to see what they could do. The support from everyone has been amazing.”

“As long as we have a community like this, we’ll win in the long run.”

There has been widespread condemnation of the break-ins in north Louth.

Local Sinn Fein councillor Antoin Watters described it as “a very brazen” escapade that took place within a short period of time on Saturday evenings.

“It happened between 6.45pm and 7.40pm and the people came back to find their homes broken into and their houses wrecked.”

He said it was perhaps lucky that there was no-one at home as they could have been injured by the intruders.

He urged people to keep an eye out on their neighbours and to contact the gardai or the Cooley Community Alert group if they see anything suspicious.

“As a community we are outraged at the burglaries that occurred on Saturday, which apparently targeted mass goers and the elderly in our community,” said Michael Muckian, chairperson of the Cooley Community Alert. “We thank the Gardaí for their rapid action and reassurance for victims and ask anyone with any information to please supply to the Gardaí in confidence. It’s important we all remain vigilant and if anyone is ever concerned about a cold caller or suspicious vehicle please call the gardai as they are happy to respond to all calls.