Kilnaleck shop owner locked in her bedroom during raid

A terrified Kilnaleck newsagent was locked in her bedroom by a gang of raiders who broke into her shop at 3.30am on last Friday morning. A garda spokesman told The Anglo-Celt that Celia O'Reilly was asleep above her shop when the gang struck. She heard them trying to break the shutters open and it is understood that Mrs. Reilly awoke, and the intruders had entered her premises. Despite security cameras and roller shutters on the window and doors, they appear to have managed to break one of the shutters and a door. The spokesman added that when the Mrs. O'Reilly came down the stairs, she confronted the raiders. “They told her that so long as she would give all the money and cigarettes, that they would not harm her. They then proceeded to grab the cigarettes and cash,†he explained. The garda spokesman also revealed that the three members of the gang locked Mrs. O'Reilly in her bedroom before going to a large silver colour getaway car where another accomplice was waiting with the doors open. She did not get out of the bedroom until a worker in the shop arrived at 7.45am on Friday. The gardaí are appealing to any members of the public who may have observed a large silver car with four male occupants in the Kilnaleck area around the time this crime took place, to contact Cavan Garda Station at 049-4331300 or Kilnaleck 049-4336202. A senior garda revealed that some of these raiders are visiting shops weeks beforehand to have a look around, often making a harmless purchase such as a bag of crisps. He urged members of the public and business people to be constantly vigilant and if they observe strangers in the area or in a town who look out of place, to take note car registrations and descriptions of such individuals and call the gardaí. Cllr. Pauline McCauley said this was a disgraceful incident and added that people should feel safe in their own homes, whether that be over a business premises or not. She thought it was bad enough for gangs to be raiding places, but to go and terrorise a lady in a premises and make her uncomfortable in her own home, is even more sinister. Raiders also forced entry through a side window into the office area at McCarren Direct in Cavan Town about one and a half hours after the Kilnaleck raid; the office was ransacked. A garda spokesman said a safe was opened and the raiders made off with some cash. There have been no sightings of the large silver car used in the Kilnaleck raid, in or around Cavan Town.