Warning issued after vans follow couriers to steal packages ahead of Christmas

"Have a trusted method, ensure one of your neighbours is in."

A warning has been issued after vans followed couriers to steal packages at locations across the country ahead of Christmas. Sergeant John Kelly of Fermoy Garda Staton urged people shopping online from sites such as Amazon, to have arrangements in place so your package is left in a secure place. He said that one estate in Youghal in County Cork saw a number of online packages go missing and presumed stolen on Tuesday. Meanwhile, in other areas of Ireland, vans have followed courier vans resulting in packages left outside homes being stolen. Speaking to Patricia Messinger on C103's Cork Today Show, Kelly said that people need to be careful and have security arrangements in place with courier services. "Shop local if you can at all," he said. "In regards to the delivery of packages, have a trusted method, ensure one of your neighbours is in." Kelly added that there had been similar instances in the past and with Christmas on the horizon, more of these robberies could take place. "There have been instances of this in the past, and there could be, with Christmas coming, some in the future as well," he continued.