Shop a crook? P**s off!!

13 July 2008 My newspaper reports that

Bedfordshire (UK) Police are sending out postcards asking people to inform on any criminal activity in their neighbourhood. "If there's a burglar living near you, we want to know about him." said a police spokesman adding, "We KNOW where most burglars live but we need evidence to convict them."

But it's alright Bedfordshire police telling us that we should shop people we suspect of being up to no good. I did exactly that a couple of years ago. We had a neighbour at the time who was into everything criminal: Burglary, stealing electricity (he'd bypassed the meter), pinching alloy wheels from off cars and reselling them on at the door, stealing and ringing cars and evading taxes insurance and MOTs, and even growing cannabis. These were only a few of his activities.

I reported the matter to the police and they persuaded me to appear as a prosecution witness against him in the magistrate's court. I was promised there would be other witnesses from the electricity board and the police.

On the day of the court appearances (two separate charge sheets against this crook for two different appearances on the same day) I was there bright and early on the morning to do my bit. No other witnesses turned up and the first case of stealing £1,500 worth of electricity was thrown out because of that.

I was sent home but had to go back that afternoon for the second series of offences. I was called to give my evidence and was made to feel like a criminal. And even though the counsel for his defence was a thick as two short planks; he'd asked me .... "And what colour was the blue car?" and he also questioned my times for the said offences only to agree with them a couple of minutes later, saying; "I was just testing you."... the defendant got away with a three months gaol, suspended for twelve months on each of three charges.

But OUR troubles had started BEFORE the cases. Our property was vandalised on numerous occasions either to intimidate me into not giving evidence against him. When he was released without having to serve any time in clink he proceeded to vandalise our property at every opportunity for a full six months! My elderly and infirm wife had building bricks thrown through her car windows which were smashed and a door panel has STILL not been replaced after over six months. We also had numerous bottles and beer cans thrown at our house windows, usually from a passing truck or car. We even paid for and had installed CCTV (on the advice of the police) to catch him in action, which we did on four or five occasions, and the police took the DVD recordings and other evidence to test for fingerprints and DNA. These tests proved positive and matched the guy. And yet the case against him was dropped DUE TO LACK OF EVIDENCE!?

So, all in all it was a disaster for us and he - the criminal - got off Scot Free and he's still out there!!

I have vowed never to appear as a witness ever again and will strive to turn a blind eye to ongoing crime every time.

*CLICK TO RETURN TO MY PROFILE*