‘One car’ to police Carrick, claim

The incident, in which three cars which were allegedly scored with a nail or similar object, is the latest of a series in the area, according to the Chair of Newtownabbey District Policing Partnership Barbara Gilliland.

“Farm Lodge has had problems with vandalism for some time,” she claimed. “It appears that this damage was caused in broad daylight by someone walking past the cars.

“This act of wanton damage is likely to cause the car owners hundreds of pounds to repair let alone the inconvenience in getting the repairs done. I would appeal anyone who might be able to identify the person responsible to contact the police with the details.

“Obviously the residents in Farm Lodge have serious concerns regarding the police response on this occasion and I will be speaking to the commander about this at our next meeting. From what the residents were told, it appears that the police had only one car out to cover the whole Newtownabbey and Carrickfergus area.”

However, Inspector Tommy Mahood of Carrickfergus PSNI denied the claim that police response to the crime was insufficient. “We can’t comment on individual cases, but there is adequate coverage for every area,” he said.