Police.. is this the norm these days?

[Shimmyhill]

So many experts in this thread I'm not sure where to start...

To the OP, the officers will complete a package that will be handed over - PCSO or local officers will do house to house in due course, they would only go knocking on doors if it was in progress or had just happened.

As for all the people who watch too much CSI Miami - you can't get prints from wood/trees/fences etc so they wouldn't come down dusting the entire garden for prints. CSI generally work in daytime not night time so would be arranged to some round the following day if there is a good chance of evidence (weather, surfaces evidence is on etc) Obv for a serious crime CSI would come out all hours of the day.

The OP has suffered a Burglary other than dwelling and it would generally be a priority crime but as others have alluded too unless you catch the offender during/leaving or with forensics there isn't a huge amount the officer on scene can do at the time other than offer reassurance and crime prevention advice.

FWIW there are very few officers sat up with speed cameras and if so it will be a traffic officer or a local SNT officer doing the duties asked for by the residents of their patch - the money doesn't go to the Police anyway! I was trying to think of an example of something where more officers would be doing that than using speed cameras thats out of the ordinary but i can't think of a single thing thats done less than officers stood out with speed cameras - people have a very warped view of how many officers stand around with radar guns!

But don't that let all the experts put you off disliking the Police and what they do, they would have to find something else to dislike with no experience, knowledge or objectivity on the subject and it may ruin their street/keyboard-cred

 

[NeilF]

I have to say, my opinion of the (Thames Valley) police is not very good at all. I think they're completely under resourced and at times their priorities are completely wrong.

Two examples:-

1) A family member gets a call from the head of the tennants association of the flat where they own a nice two bedroom flat which they rent out. Apparently the tennants had noticed some strange going on in my relatives flat, reported it to the police and nothing had been done so after a month or so contacted my relative directly.

They went straight around there to discover the flat had been turned into a brothel. They immediately phoned the police for help/advice and were told (even though they mentioned they thought there were drugs there) they should not have phoned 999 for this sort of matter, and were given another number to phone instead. At the second number they were told no one could assist, and they'd have to chuck the pimp out and deal with the matter themselves + they were given a crime reference number. So even though the flat was strewn with evidence, including a laptop which the pimp was extremely protective about, they weren't the least bit interested. Indeed they'd ignored the matter for over a month as well since it was originally reported by the other tennants.

As the pimp was leaving, taking all manner of things with him, they noticed the DVDs with pictures of kids and adults on the covers. If only ONE police officer could have come along to evaluate and help? However, when my relative was arrested for threatening the pimp months later (& this wasn't a physical threat either!) in an attempt to get compensation for the damage caused to the flat, they managed to find NINE police officers who were free to turn up to take him off.

2) Another relative (a young female) arrived back to her house late one night to find the front door had been kicked in. She phoned the police and was told no one could assist and was given a crime reference number. She had to go into the house (in the dark) alone and see if there was anyone there. She received a chase up call for the crime reference number, A YEAR LATER to see if she was alright!


To be frank I have no faith in the police managing to do the right thing, and instead fear they now only do what gives the best figures on the spread sheets. Having now seen the way the system works (or fails to) you have to play the game! ie: If you want the police there you need to suggest there's the risk of violence etc.

 

[JamesM]

motion activated lights would be better..

It's one that lights up I believe. Trouble is with a security light, am I making it easier for them to see stuff to pinch!

If you could see my mums garden, it's not the easiest thing to get through, she was doing gardening work at the time so branches, small trees, rubbish, etc all lying around on the grass, patio.

Unless they are spider man then I can't see how it's possible for them to navigate all that while carrying a table and chairs in the dark without making a huge amount of noise.

The only times they could have taken it was Wednesday night until 8pm when my mum arrived home from work or during the day on Thursday. Whoever they are they clearly don't mind being seen.

I've just tried to move the BBQ into her house to stop them from taking that and just lifting it up made a hell of a racket. God knows how they moved it in order to try and kick the back door in without making a scene god only knows.

I don't dislike the police at all, this isn't a OMG all police are ****. I know there are good and bad, I just thought something as simple as taking 5 mins to ask a few questions would be considered the thing to do, rather than just give the 'got no proof' card and do nothing.

 

[Gaygle]

No this isn't normal as far as I know. I went to a very similar job the other day and we knocked on a few doors and it turns out that the neighbour had seen who had done it. Did an area search for the individual but to no avail, but a colleague was going to follow it up.

Admittedly this happened at 6pm and there were 4 of us who attended.

I would definitely recommend updating your security to that back gate though. You could have avoided this all by locking the gate!

 

[estebanrey]

Yea because theft where usually no-one gets hurt is more of a 'real' crime unlike the guy who crashes into a driver of someone on their phone which could mean anything from injury to death.

So you are comparing an actual crime that has happened with a possible (but rather low probability) event?

And just to re-cap, this guy was using his phone whilst stopped at lights. There was no danger of him 'crashing' into anyone (even if he did it's far more likely the only death would be his own). The police tried to get him on a 'technicality' because his engine was still running which whilst is enforcing the law, it's not enforcing the spirit of the law.

I'm glad the court saw common sense in that case.

 

[JamesM]

No this isn't normal as far as I know. I went to a very similar job the other day and we knocked on a few doors and it turns out that the neighbour had seen who had done it. Did an area search for the individual but to no avail, but a colleague was going to follow it up.

Admittedly this happened at 6pm and there were 4 of us who attended.

I would definitely recommend updating your security to that back gate though. You could have avoided this all by locking the gate!

Sorry there isn't a gate at the rear. The gardens are separated by a fence which has seen better days purely down to the fact the opposite side has been kicking, stamping, ripping it apart.

The fence was fine a number of years ago but it appears the houses to the rear (2 terraced houses share this run down garden) have had new occupiers over a period of time and since then, it's gone down hill.

The fence is then fronted by conifers on my mothers side which offer a bit of protection but clearly not enough. Since my bike was taken she's spent time trying to block up and make it more secure but from what's apparent now, everything she puts up to try and stop these people simply gets removed and pulled down.

Which is why she's reluctant to spend a few hundred pounds on a brand new rear fence only for them to start smashing it up again.

 

[Brookert]

2) Another relative (a young female) arrived back to her house late one night to find the front door had been kicked in. She phoned the police and was told no one could assist and was given a crime reference number. She had to go into the house (in the dark) alone and see if there was anyone there. She received a chase up call for the crime reference number, A YEAR LATER to see if she was alright!

This, if true, is truely disgusting.

 

[JamesM]

The above picture shows a bit better.. House with the star is my mum's, her garden backs onto the large open space with what looks like a pond but isn't. This garden is shared by the terraced block to the rear which has side access along what looks like a foot path.

Bare in mind this picture was taken a long time ago, the rear gardens to the back of the terraced houses aren't separated by trees like the picture shows, it's now all one garden with hedges to either side and is certainly no where near as neat and tidy as the previous owner kept it. It's now a mass of tall grass, toys, tents and other random stuff.

So when you consider a heavy steel bike and metal garden table with a solid glass top, along with chairs has been taken from our garden, it can only go one way.. across the garden to the rear.

I know the chances of catching anyone are 0.01% but on the off chance that it is these people living to the rear, surely a knock on the door and a few questions may make them think something is actually being done about it rather than nothing happening. If they hear nothing whats to stop them doing it again and again?

 

[edscdk]

whats the legal implications of strapping razor blades to your own garden stuff? that might put them off...! - it would also leave behing blood samples.... and flesh...

 

[JamesM]

We had thought about attaching nails to the fence but after this time they have damaged the fence so much there isn't actually really to attach it to now.

If it was a tall brand new fence then yes we'd certainly be doing something along those lines.

 

[NeilF]

This, if true, is truely disgusting.

Oh it's true! And my first example is an even worse endictment of the police force IMHO.

They had been informed of a suspect brothel. They had been told of the numerous 'gentlemen' coming and going into the flat, and that they could even see the girls through the windows. So it was fairly clear what was going on. Yet, the police did nothing! They didn't even ask for the details of the owners of the flat such that they could simply contact them and inform them of the situation. Instead they let the owners (my relative) find out themselves, and worse still deal with the situation themselves.

It's an appalling lack of common sense shown by the police which ultimately led to my relative even being arrested over the matter trying to get compensation for the damage done to the property by the illegal activity that the police were not interested in!

 

[Kamwah]

So you are comparing an actual crime that has happened with a possible (but rather low probability) event?

And just to re-cap, this guy was using his phone whilst stopped at lights. There was no danger of him 'crashing' into anyone (even if he did it's far more likely the only death would be his own). The police tried to get him on a 'technicality' because his engine was still running which whilst is enforcing the law, it's not enforcing the spirit of the law.

I'm glad the court saw common sense in that case.

You're an idiot. I won't bother arguing with you.

 

[King Damager]

If you really want protection, sod CCTV etc... get one of these for your mum...



Depending how much she works/ how old she is, it'll keep her company, and no matter what they say you can 99% of dogs to behave well.

A dog would surely be much more of a deterrent than just about anything else... We used to have a staffy who scared the **** out of anyone who walked into the house, because he'd run at them and jump up... Being a staff, people ran... xD Yeah, he'd jump up at them because he was being playful, never hurt a fly that dog...

kd

 

[Vulcan]

So do thieves like this ever get nabbed then? I'm guessing that all the local scumbags are known to the police, but if simple burglaries never get investigated....

"The courts don't do anything with them" - That's what the Police told us after we provided video evidence to them. Quite annoying when you spend all this money to protect your house, only to be told that it's all pointless anyway as it's a case of "boys will be boys".

 

[4T5]

Perhaps you should ring them yourself & explain how vulnerable your Mum feels & that this has happened before & remind them of the circumstances. It may be that your Mum played it down when relaying the information as most people Brave it out when talking to the Police if you know what I mean.
As her Son you are quite entitled to ring the station & ask for something more to be done to re assure your Mum that the Police are at least taking it seriously.
Just a thought.

 

[JamesM]

Mum can't have a dog.. She works around the country so can be gone a few nights in a row etc. Although she does work from home on the odd occasion but I don't think you can take a dog to the airport

She certainly didn't play it down, even when i'm with her she's been on the phone crying so they know it's serious.

I've been with her to the station, was with her last night. The guy last night saw the situation, how she was and how this had worried her.

 

[Fire_fly]

We had thought about attaching nails to the fence but after this time they have damaged the fence so much there isn't actually really to attach it to now.

If it was a tall brand new fence then yes we'd certainly be doing something along those lines.

That may not be the best idea, one of my grandfathers neighbours had a similar idea after he had been burgled several times. When the police arrived round to check over the area the following day and found him topping his walls with nails and broken glass he was told to remove them at once as he could face prosecution if some one was injured whilst trying to break in. It is such a stupid system we have were the right of the thieving scumbags come before the rights of the victim.

Personally I would just get a couple of alarm mines or even better a couple claymores.

 

[JamesM]

That may not be the best idea, one of my grandfathers neighbours had a similar idea after he had been burgled several times. When the police arrived round to check over the area the following day and found him topping his walls with nails and broken glass he was told to remove them at once as he could face prosecution if some one was injured whilst trying to break in. It is such a stupid system we have were the right of the thieving scumbags come before the rights of the victim.

Personally I would just get a couple of alarm mines or even better a couple claymores.

It's stupid isn't it? I can see why people take it into their own hands to defend their property if the police can't seem to. Trouble is the person who defends their property gets into more trouble than the bloody person committing the crime!

I watched an american cop program a few weeks ago where a chap had shot a guy in his own home as he was threatening his daughter. The police took the guy away and simply took a statement from the old man and then placed the gun back in his drawer and that was it!

I'm not saying shooting him was right but wheres that kind of common sense in this country?

Maybe if criminals knew that if and when they try to steal someone's personal items, that they could be hurt/injured in the process they might actually think twice about it.

 

[Jonny69]

I think you're just going to have to take the legal route into stopping them getting into the garden. Yes, broken glass on walls and nails in the top of the fence is illegal, but putting a 3 ft trellace on top of the fence covered in a spiky plant is not. It's effective and looks nice to boot. As for the side gate, it needs to be tonky. If you think you can kick it down yourself, it's not strong enough...

 

[Shimmyhill]

Oh it's true! And my first example is an even worse endictment of the police force IMHO.

They had been informed of a suspect brothel. They had been told of the numerous 'gentlemen' coming and going into the flat, and that they could even see the girls through the windows. So it was fairly clear what was going on. Yet, the police did nothing! They didn't even ask for the details of the owners of the flat such that they could simply contact them and inform them of the situation. Instead they let the owners (my relative) find out themselves, and worse still deal with the situation themselves.

It's an appalling lack of common sense shown by the police which ultimately led to my relative even being arrested over the matter trying to get compensation for the damage done to the property by the illegal activity that the police were not interested in!

What do you want them to do, kick the door in and send a squad in - they wouldn't have power of entry without a warrant and you were given a job number not a crime number.

Its not lack of common sense its the powers they are given under law - when reported it would have gone to the intel bureau and if enough evidence was given then an application for a warrant would go in. Its the same for when people ring the police to report the smell of drugs and expect officers to go round and kick the door in, they don't have the powers to do so.

How would you feel if your neighbour who doesn't get on with you said you were dealing weed and burning dodgy dvds and the police kicked your door in with no evidence bar a phone call that potentially malicious??

I can imagine the thread you would post on here should that have happened but its fine to do it to some one else without evidence and warrants???