'Lock up between 5pm and 11pm,' Garda warning on pre-Christmas burglaries

Gardaí are advising people to Lock Up and Light Up as most burglaries occur between 5pm and 11pm in winter months and over 50% of burglaries take place either through the front or back door.

Operation Thor is a multi-strand approach to tackling burglaries with an emphasis on preventing the crime from happening in the first instance.

Operation Thor actively targets organised crime gangs and repeat offenders through co-ordinated crime prevention and enforcement activity based on intelligence and the latest burglary trends.

Analysis from the Garda Analysis Services shows that residential burglaries increase between the hours of 5pm and 10pm during winter.

On average 1 in 5 intruders enter through an unsecured door or window. Homes that look unoccupied are more vulnerable to burglary.

The most likely entry point for a burglar is a door – 27% of burglaries take place through the front door and 25% through a rear door. Access through a rear window accounts for 28%.

Burglars tend to target cash and jewellery when breaking into homes.