A positive Police story for a change...
 

My sister and her family had the awful reality of being burgled whilst away on holiday a couple of weeks ago. The effect this had on them all as a family was shocking. The kids in particular have not been the same since returning home.

The house was trashed from top to bottom, with no stone left unturned. They even nicked my nieces little scooter thingy...I mean they cost about £20 new ffs, and this one was about 3 years old:flame:

They loaded up their family car and drove off with it all in the boot!!!

Anyway...since this happening, my nephew has been perhaps the worst shaken by it all, he used to be a typical 11 year old, out with his mates as soon as he got home from school, wanting to stay up for as long as possible before going to bed. Now he has to get picked up from school by one of the family, and when he gets home, he basically stays in, sits on the sofa, and doesn't move, until its time to go to bed, at which point (at the moment) he insists on sleeping with either his mum or dad. Hes just scared that the 'men' might come back.

As suggested in the title, since the first day of this, the police have been absolutely superb. It has been about 2 weeks now, and I would say that almost everyday, someone has been in contact with my sisters family, either a local PC dropping in to see how they are, victim support offering their services, or CID giving them constant updates on their progress.

Last night she received a call to say that they have arrested one man, and are about to arrest another. They have recovered about 80% of their belongings by the sound of it...although obviously it is too early to be sepecific.

The family had to go in to the Oxford division last night to identify loads of items etc., and whilst there, the CID gent took a considerable amount of time to explain to my nephew how they go about catching scumbags like this...techniques used etc...which he found fascinating. He went to bed last night in his own bed for the first time since the incident.

He also told my sister how the theives, on knowing that the first people to recover the stolen car are likley to be the Police, they put razor blades in the drivers seat when they dump it!!!!!!:o:mad::flame: I mean...how ****ed up is that!

Anyway, apparently the ****ers have been doing this for sometime...and their method is to cruise the streets at about 8/9 o'clock,and look for houses with no lights on. When they spot a few, the come back about an hour later, and if there are still no light, they go in.

So the old wives tale of leaving a landing light on would probably have stopped my sister from getting done-over! She had ensured that people where going to the house on a daily basis to feed her pets and make it look as though someone was in and house was not empty...but I guess it was just bad timing.

My advice...get yourselves down to halford/argos/B&Q today for some of those plug in timer thingies...AND USE 'EM!

But as for the Police...couldn't fault them i any way...in fact they went way above and beyond any expectations.

BIG UP THAMES VALLEY POLICE...:lol:

[Edited on 2-3-2006 by Harv748]

Congratulations & bthanks to Thames Valley Police, and I'm glad the family are overcoming the trauma of this episode.

I would also like to echo Harv's thoughts about the police in Oxfordshire and Bedfordshire.

On October 1st me and my whole family went to the Sheldonian Theatre in Oxford to see my son get his degree from Oxford University - a very proud moment.

Later that day, whilst still in Oxford, a member of my family was seriously attacked. I'm not going to go into any more details about it, suffice it to say that in dealing with this, the Police were absolutely superb throughout.

All we ever seem to hear are stories of the police persecuting road users, and I'm sure we've all had a patronising roadside 'chat' with the law at some stage in our lives.

What we tend to forget is that it's the same people dealing with all the binge drinkers, the lowlife and scum that everybody else wants to turn a blind eye to.

Top marks to Thames Valley and Bedfordshire Police

Wouldn't it be great if the courts who eventually get to deal with the scumbags actually had some teeth, knock on effect would be that the police would be more motivated, criminals would be less incentivised and society would be all the better for removing the scum from circulation. Wouldn't it ?

My aged Mother was robbed on two seperate occasions by three such pillars of society while alone in her bungalow at night, luckily she's pretty plucky but she shouldn't have to be IMHO !!!

[Edited on 2-3-2006 by Paul James]

Police are just people at the end of the day doing a job. There are nice people and nasty people and who you get when in contact with them is what makes your opinion of them. The best entertainment I have had sometimes is when I have had burglar in the cells whos in prison and whos been burgled by someone else locked up in another cell. Great, their reaction is the same as yours but nobody cares. I use timers on table lamps positioned in most of the rooms in my house. I set them up so that one comes on when one is going off to give the illusion that someone is going to bed or using the toilet, that way scum bags will think someone is in there moving about. Even done it to tvs sometimes so someone can hear it. People think I am mad but to date I have not been burgled. You have to think like them, they dont like obstacles which increase the chances of them getting caught. Close your gates, it is a visual obstacle and it makes noise to open. Spikey plants around your boarders hurt when people try to climb. Get an alarm, make sure you have deadlocks on all doors and windows. Think about if you want to break in to your house if say you lost your keys at 3 oclock in the morning without being seen or heard. If you can do it then so can anyone else. Its all a game to them and I like to think I make the rules. Burglers are not that bright in the main. I can think of one who broke into a conservatory in the middle of the night and looked about at what to steal. There were some electrical items that were easy to carry, but no he chose a large ships bell on the wall which was heavy and hard to remove, he yanked it and pulled at it, all the while it was dinging and donging which woke the family up. He didnt hear them coming because of the noise of the bell and was supprised to be wrestled to the groung and detained until the Police arrived. :roll:

I`ve always said there not all bad.

Im sure not all estate agents are bad either, or all Solicitors are money grabbing bstrds.....but i cant stand them!:lol::lol:

A couple of nice tales from Harv and Jools, and i've had similar experiences in the past with some exceptionally keen and professional officers.

But sadly it's not allways like that. A few nights ago at 1a.m. I was woken by banging noises which sounded like someone climbing over a fence. I looked out of the bedroom window and saw 2 men in our garden. I immediately dialled 999 & asked for the police, giving a very detailed description of the men. Eventually they left the garden and went off up the road. I followed them in my van and after about 15 minutes dialled 999 again & told the police I was still following them. In the end I gave up and went home. Nobody attended and when I phoned up the next day to ask why not I was told that the description of the men had been circulated to patrols. When I asked why nobody had attended the girl just gave me the same answer.

I'll sort it myself next time.

Not having a dig mate but it gets to the point when on certain shifts, there really isnt any police officers spare.:o

really glad to hear the family was taken care of and the police took the time to help the kids along. Excellent perception and I am sure an event admired by the parents. Hope the boy is out and around again.....

The turds who do this stuff do not consider any of the trauma they wreak. Pure stupid greed.

Any good story about a bank manager?????........ ahem.... no??? :lol:
:flame::flame:


As for the police, I've always respected those guys...

My brother and sister-in-law were at work during the day, around 2pm an elderly neighbour spotted four people acting suspicious around my brothers house, three of them jumped over his wall and proceded to break into his house, while the other keept a look-out. The neighbour by that time had called the police (999) and told them what was going on. They manged to get into his house, alarm blaring, break into his garage and walk off with his Yam R6. using his keys from inside the house. Shortly after my brother retirns from work to see a smashed in back door. He grabs a bat and goes outside to see if he can see any one. On getting outside a police car gently pulls up. They ask him what he is doing, he says that someone has broken in. They confirm this by saying "We know, and thay have stolen your motorbike!"
My brother hadn't even thought to check his garage and was shocked to know how they knew. "Oh a neighbour was giving a running commentary to what was going on."
It turns out the police took 40 mins to get to his house, from their station which is two and a half miles away on a weekday afternoon.
He was been paid out by the insureance but he won't get another bike, incase it happens again.
If he had £50 mil or so stolen. they might've been quicker.