A video which aims to help prevent rural crime will be launched at Garda Headquarters this morning, as gardai move to calm fears of renewed attacks on the elderly this winter.
The video is called A Quiet Life, and was produced with funding from the IFA and FBD Insurance Ltd. It will be launched by the Garda Commissioner, Mr Pat Byrne.
It aims to heighten awareness of personal security issues, and will be used by gardai at local level as part of crime prevention programmes, including the Community Alert and Neighbourhood Watch schemes.
It comes as gardai in east Galway and Roscommon are confident about solving a number of serious crimes in the area, including some of the attacks on the elderly last winter which sparked Operation Shannon, the largest Garda operation of its kind seen in the west.
In the past week, gardai in Athlone and Ballinasloe have questioned a number of men in connection with serious crime in the area. Two men have appeared in court on separate charges.
Last January, following an outbreak of attacks in isolated areas, the Garda authorities organised a number of measures to curb the attacks.
Most activity in Operation Shannon was focused on east Galway and south Roscommon, where almost permanent checkpoints were set up, backed up by "continuously armed units" in the immediate vicinity.
The highly visible Garda presence on the ground involved gardai from Galway, Roscommon, Tipperary and Clare, backed up by Air Corps helicopters based in Renmore Barracks, Galway.
It was extended to cover parts of Sligo, Longford and Limerick, and more than 300 gardai were involved.
According to a Garda spokesman, a scaled down version of the operation continues in force.
He confirmed that the opening hours in a number of local Garda stations were reduced recently from two hours to one, but said the move was designed to release individual gardai from desk work and to increase mobile patrols.
The affected stations are at Tynagh, Woodford, Killimor, Eyrecourt, Kilreekil and New Inn. The move has been criticised by a local councillor, Mr Michael Regan, who said it had led to considerable disquiet in the area.
Meanwhile, the Minister for Justice, Mrs Owen, has opened a refurbished Garda station at Frenchpark, Co Roscommon, where a garda and his family have taken up residence.
At the opening, the Minister said she would like to see an increase in the number of gardai living in small rural stations.
This would be helped by a £9 million building and maintenance programme for stations in need of renovation.