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Police 'take a week to act' on tip-off over £25,000 theft
12:20pm Tuesday 6th December 2011 in News
By Chris Yandell »
Chief Reporter, New Forest
THE victim of a £25,000 heist has accused police of allowing the thieves – and the stolen property – to slip through their fingers.
Lee Mellor pinpointed the area where the missing items had been taken but says officers took a week to arrive – by which time the goods had been spirited away.
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Mr Mellor, who runs a scaffolding firm at Marchwood, said the villains used one of his own lorries to steal 50 metal beams.
The vehicle was found abandoned in West End the following morning.
Mr Mellor said: “Data from the lorry’s tracker revealed that the vehicle had initially been taken to an address in the Eastleigh area.
“I told the police but they were refused entry when they visited the address. It took them a week to get a search warrant – and they never did find the missing gear.
“I can’t believe they didn’t act more quickly. I’ve told them that I’m definitely not happy.”
The thieves broke into the office and took the keys to the lorries, loading one of the vehicles with aluminium beams before driving away.
A Hampshire Police spokesman said: “After receiving information from the owner about the movements of his stolen vehicle, police conducted a search of that area within 45 minutes.”
Asked about the search warrant the spokesman said: “There are strict guidelines to be adhered to when obtaining a warrant from a magistrate – this was a complicated process as the area identified contained numerous business premises, including storage units, containers and many other outbuildings.
“Police had to provide sufficient evidence to the magistrate that one of those business premises was probably linked to the crime, which took several days."
Police 'take a week to act' on tip-off over £25,000 theft (From Daily Echo)
12:20pm Tuesday 6th December 2011 in News
By Chris Yandell »
Chief Reporter, New Forest
THE victim of a £25,000 heist has accused police of allowing the thieves – and the stolen property – to slip through their fingers.
Lee Mellor pinpointed the area where the missing items had been taken but says officers took a week to arrive – by which time the goods had been spirited away.
Crime Stats
The Daily Echo provides interactive stats so you can check what crimes have happened in your neighbourhood. Check our interactive crime stats for for more.
Mr Mellor, who runs a scaffolding firm at Marchwood, said the villains used one of his own lorries to steal 50 metal beams.
The vehicle was found abandoned in West End the following morning.
Mr Mellor said: “Data from the lorry’s tracker revealed that the vehicle had initially been taken to an address in the Eastleigh area.
“I told the police but they were refused entry when they visited the address. It took them a week to get a search warrant – and they never did find the missing gear.
“I can’t believe they didn’t act more quickly. I’ve told them that I’m definitely not happy.”
The thieves broke into the office and took the keys to the lorries, loading one of the vehicles with aluminium beams before driving away.
A Hampshire Police spokesman said: “After receiving information from the owner about the movements of his stolen vehicle, police conducted a search of that area within 45 minutes.”
Asked about the search warrant the spokesman said: “There are strict guidelines to be adhered to when obtaining a warrant from a magistrate – this was a complicated process as the area identified contained numerous business premises, including storage units, containers and many other outbuildings.
“Police had to provide sufficient evidence to the magistrate that one of those business premises was probably linked to the crime, which took several days."
Police 'take a week to act' on tip-off over £25,000 theft (From Daily Echo)
