Rural crime against older people has been an issue for many years now, yet more and more garda stations are shutting down across the country.
There is concern that targeted periodic policing campaigns can only go so far, with a lack of dedicated stations and community policing in rural areas leaving older people isolated.
Our investigation will expose the impact of the shuttering of garda stations and examine whether older people living in remote areas are being protected by authorities.
WHAT YOUR FUNDING SUPPORTS
We are going to analyse the latest crime data to determine the areas of rural Ireland with the highest incidents of burglary.
Our reporters will speak to victims of burglary about the impact on their lives and ask if there is enough policing and support services in place to ensure that they can sleep easy.
In 2019, the Oireachtas Justice Committee released a report with 20 recommendations to promote community policing and reduce rural crime. We will send requests to authorities in charge of making the changes to find out if recommendations are being implemented.
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You can contact us at [email protected] and find out how we work here. Our investigations are sourced from and crowdfunded by the public.