Two men in court for Grand Parade muggings

Gardaí have charged two men in relation to two separate mugging incidents on Grand Parade over the last 24 hours.

The first incident occurred at approximately 10pm last night when a man attempted to take handbags from two women who were walking on Grand Parade.

He was unsuccessful and ran off in the direction of South Mall. Following a search of the area, Gardaí arrested a man in his 20s.

He was brought to Bridewell Garda Station and detained under Section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act 1984. He has since been charged and is due to appear before Cork District Court this morning.

The second incident occurred at 5am this morning when a man attempted to take a handbag from a women walking on Grand Parade. The man was unsuccessful and ran from the scene.

Following a search of the surrounding area, Gardaí arrested a man in his 20s. He was also brought to Bridewell Garda Station and detained under Section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act 1984. He has since been charged and will also appear before Cork District Court this morning.

Speaking at Anglesea Street Garda Station, Community Policing Sgt Stewart Philpott said: "I would like to remind people to be vigilant and aware of your surroundings no matter what time of day it is. Keep your belongings safely on your person and out of view."

"Be sure to take note of your phones unique 15 digit IMEI number and contact Gardaí as soon as you can if you have had anything stolen. Because the victims in these two incidents contacted Gardaí immediately, it has allowed us to arrest two suspects who are due before the courts this morning."

Sgt Philpott added: "The Garda ‘Streetwise’ campaign has lots of personal safety advice and can be viewed on the Garda website or by calling into any Garda station and discussing it with ourselves."