By J. P. Anderson:

GARDAÍ IN Co Waterford have appealed to the public for assistance in catching a gang who broke into the home of a 68-year-old woman in the middle of the night, beat her up and left her tied to a fence after making off with an amount of cash.

“This was a shocking and totally unprovoked attack on an elderly, defenceless woman who complied with this gang’s request only to be repeatedly beaten and assaulted by them again.

“It was a brutal crime,” said Insp Paul Heffernan.

Gardaí in Dungarvan under Supt Tom O’Grady have set up an incident room to investigate the attack on the woman, who lives alone down in the townland of Grange, Ardmore.

Insp Heffernan described the attack as particularly vicious, and urged anyone with information to contact gardaí at 058-48600.

The woman was said to be in a stable condition at Waterford Regional Hospital.

Her ordeal began at about 4.30am on Saturday, when gardaí believe the three-man gang broke into her isolated cottage by smashing in the window of her bedroom. After hauling her from bed, they began beating her around the head and upper body as they demanded money.

Gardaí believe the gang were not satisfied with the amount of money handed over and they continued to beat the woman around the head with their fists and possibly a stick, before taking her into the back garden and tying her to a wooden fence.

The woman managed to free herself after the gang made off in a car and she went back into the house and phoned the emergency services.

The woman was brought by ambulance to Waterford Regional Hospital. Gardaí cordoned off the scene to allow technical experts to carry out a forensic examination of the house in the hope that they might locate fibres or other material which could help them to identify the attackers.

According to Insp Heffernan, gardaí don’t believe that the members of the gang were masked and they may be in their 20s.

One member was notably of a bigger build than his two accomplices, but beyond that gardaí have no further details.

The attack was condemned by local priest Fr Maurice O’Gorman of nearby Clashmore, who said it had made people fearful in their homes.

Fr O’Gorman urged anyone with any information to contact gardaí. “People are shocked and terrified. This was a terrible attack on a harmless elderly woman living on her own.

“It’s hard to believe that something like this could happen to someone so harmless,” Fr O’Gorman said.

The attack was also strongly condemned by president of Muintir na Tíre Martin Quinn, who said it was a particularly callous and cowardly attack on an elderly person in her home.