Gardaí in the west fear that there may be a new spate of attacks on elderly people living alone following a raid on a 92-year-old man in Co Roscommon.
The elderly pensioner was terrorised by three masked men who broke into his home in Boyle and escaped with a large sum of money.
The pensioner was badly shaken by the incident and his life savings of €20,000 was taken by the raiders who ransacked the house.
Now gardaí fear that the raid, which happened a week-and-a- half ago, is the start of a new wave of attacks on elderly people living alone in the west.
A Garda spokesperson has reiterated an appeal to elderly people not to keep large sums of cash in their homes.
"There are a number of precautions which should be taken, and not keeping large amounts of cash at home is one of these.
"We would also urge family and neighbours to keep and eye on elderly people living alone and for them to come up with ways of improving security," the spokesperson said.
The 92-year-old, a retired civil servant, was badly shaken by the incident, which happened at his house in the centre of Boyle in north Co Roscommon.
Three men forced their way into his home and physically restrained him as they rifled through drawers in search of cash.
Once the money was found, the men left the house through the back door.
Gardaí are appealing to anyone who was in the Marian Road and Churchview area of Boyle on the night of January 24th to contact them if they noticed anything that might help with their enquiries.