Dingdongler

I wasn't sure whether to post about this or not, but have decided it might be useful for others.

Last week my father in law came downstairs at about midday to discover three men in his house burgling him. When he tried to call the police one of them smacked him, he's 74 years old and riddled with arthritis.

They had rung the bell earlier but my FIL didn't answer because he thought it would just be some cold caller.

They forced the front door open, in the middle of the day in broad daylight.

The house is clearly alarmed, so either they weren't bothered even if the alarm was to sound or they knew he was in and that didn't bother them.

He lives in a well to do West London suburb, if that matters.

I'm trying to keep everything in perspective and be balanced and not over react. However

1) About 18 months ago a work colleague was burgled first thing in the morning. Along with his wife he was tied up and threatened with an axe to reveal the location of his safe. His 18 year old daughter was upstairs hiding under the bed and managed to call the police.

2) About 6 months ago another work colleague came downstairs in the middle of the day to find a bloke with a crash helmet on burgling her.

As a result I'm really thinking about turning my house into a fortress. It is already alarmed and has cctv cameras, but I'm thinking about having a strengthened front door, retractable security grills for all ground floor windows etc.

All these things look ugly and to some extent scream paranoia, but maybe it's better to do these things before something happens rather than after.

I need to emphasise that I have no interest in protecting my belongings. Everything is insured and most things can be replaced, I'm only concerned about the safety of my family.

Leslie

Thats a frightener and I hope it does not spread. I hope he was not badly injured in any way.

Les

jazzyjembreaze

iTrader: (11)

Get your shotgun licence
Buy a nice Remington side/side
A decent locked gun cupboard
I wouldn't think twice if my family were in danger
Jail or not

I'm not been stupid / I'm sorry for your family's trouble

specialx

Really sorry to hear this just get a Big dog job done!

dpb

Sounds like may have cased joint/him

drb5

iTrader: (4)

All they do is bring some meat with them!


Don't blame you for considering it Ding. If you feel it necessary, then don't let anyone else convince you otherwise.

dpb

If you've a real gun you've got to be prepared to use it, all the obvious deterrents suggest there's something to steal
Easy for me to say of course, but we don't live in a country where ramraid gates are de rigueur

Maz

iTrader: (34)

That's bad news Ding. Having been burgled myself (thankfully they were in and out while we slept) it's the invasion that is the most distressing. The initial reaction is to turn your house in to Fort Knox and employ armed guards with a shoot to kill policy. However there are other other precautions you can take. The council/police will have a body that advises on security and they will make recommendations and carry out work free of charge as your FIL is a pensioner. CCTV is a good idea and having a neighbourhood watch scheme in place is a good deterrent too.
However there is only so much you can do. The brazenness and desperation of some intruders knows no bounds. What your FIL will really benefit from is having family around and lots of support. This incident will have shook him up although he may not admit it.

john banks

Sorry to hear. If you work in the city you can't just move out to reduce the chance of crimes that are more prevalent in cities, and also why should you?

corradoboy

Sorry to hear of this, and a sad state of affairs that young, healthy blokes (I won't refer to them as men ) felt the need to resort to violence against such a minor threat as a frail old man.

We are currently trying to catch a prowler who is visiting our property every 4-5 days, but he is not yet a hardened criminal, just an opportunist trying doors to see if they've been left open. He was in next doors garage on Saturday night at 9pm, which we have on CCTV.

To the guy who said 'get a gun', isn't it well reported in the US that most people are killed by their own gun when decent people are reluctant to fire and the scum take it from them in a struggle and show no such reservation !

Mary mag

Very sorry to hear of this.

My neighbours 15 year old daughter came home from school last week at 4pm to find two burglars in the house.

Fortunately they made their escape and didn't bother her, but things could have been much worse.

Dingdongler

Thanks for the kind words.

1) I've often thought about having a dog. The problem is if you buy a dog for guard dog duties then it needs to be a certain kind of dog ie no point in having a poodle. My perceived concerns with such a breed is their child safety.

Not just that, I don't think I've got the time to give a dog the attention it needs.

2) Funnily enough I've even thought about a shotgun. This first crossed my mind when we had the riots in London last year and then I thought better of it.
I don't really like the idea of a gun in the house and there is of course the risk that the burglers get it off me and bust a cap in my ***

jazzyjembreaze

iTrader: (11)

^
First things first
Get ur licence , shoot a few clays ( u may even enjoy it ) once ur comftable with your gun , style , choice & u have the feel & quick loading technique / your strapped
Nobody getting that off you m8
Hel , just use double dose buck shot

Hope it works out for you

mart360

Glad to hear everyone is ok

This would be my option




Mart

rickya

iTrader: (18)

There has been several such aggravated burglaries taking place in Harrow recently where up to five masked men are forcing residents to hand over valuables and making off in a silver people carrier.

Shaid

Sorry to hear this bud

yellowvanman

Ding, I have it on good authority, that a dog will work for the opportunist thief, given the choice of a house with a dog or one without, then they will go for the one without.

No need for a trained guard dog, but prob not a poodle! Not all breeds of dog need a lot of exercise, but hey it is good for you!

In seriousness, you're not going to get a gun, let alone draw it on someone, are you?

Tony Harrington

iTrader: (8)

This kind of menace will sadly continue to increase until those who have the power, authority & clout decide to toughen up.

Again another innocent victim turned over in their own home, and how this will affect the poor guy who knows the aftermath.. Arghhh!

I really feel for your FIL & applaud you for the level of emotional intelligence you have shown mate.

RobsyUK

iTrader: (2)

*****! I hope your dads ok and the thing that would get me is that they go through your private things and toss them about as if they are nothing.

My neighbour had an attempted break in in broad day light with the wife home, I imagine the dogs would have barked and she said she heard a noise... But you don't think.

They had an alarm on too

YoungY25

iTrader: (5)

Sorry to hear that mate. It's a disgrace really. 74 year old man and they still attack him. Appalling.

Gun is a bad idea IMHO. Unless you have a valid reason to own one then you'll not get a licence. Plus, if you don't actually use it they will have it off you quick.

A dog is the best idea. 99% of burglars etc wont go near a house with a dog. German Shepherd is your best bet. Great family pet and will guard its family to the death. Fearless, powerful and incredibly loyal.
You don't need a guard dog either. Any pet/family dog will defend its "pack" should the situation ever arise.

^Qwerty^

Having had somebody break in whilst upstairs in bed, I'll tell you for nothing that had I been in possession of a gun, I'd have shot the bar5tard. Any thoughts on law and what might happen would go out the window and you will draw on very basic and fundamental survival instincts, more so when your Mrs and kids are in bed asleep. Fortunately, (in some respects) she won’t let me have a gun for the very reason I outline above. I also think she would be more than capable of pulling a trigger if somebody were to threaten the kids.

Lydia72

We were burgled a few years back, fast asleep at the time and first we knew of it were two policemen coming in to the bedroom to wake us up.
Knee-jerk reaction was to get shutters/ bars etc but the crime prevention office who visited cautioned us that making the house very hard to get into could also prove fatal to us if we were to ever have a house fire.

Hope your FIL is okay, it's an awful thing to happen in your own home.

the shreksta

iTrader: (20)

+1

i would rather be carried by 6 than judged by 12,anybody breaks into my home better be prepared to go the distance because i will give them a war they wish they hadnt started

hide a few weapons around your house so if they break in no matter where you are your not far away from a hammer/knife/bar etc and if they do break in-dont think or plead with them just crack em right in the eye socket with a hammer then pull their nails off with pliers,then force feed them broken glass,then poor boiling oil over their face..............sorry got a bit carried away then but you get the idea

tarmac terror

iTrader: (2)

My mothers house was burgled on NYD while she attended church. Nothing taken other than jewellery, fenced off through cash for gold no questions asked i'm sure. I would love to have disturbed them.

Fit some bump resistant and snap secure locks, install a "Secure Ring" - (google it) - on final exit doors, shoot bolts on french doors and locking pins anti-lift kits on patio doors. Doesnt need to cost a lot, but it does make access more difficult.

I have seen home alarms activated, to determine what checks if any home owners carry out before silencing the alarm.

micky boy

iTrader: (10)

what the shreksta said ^^^^^^^^^^

they better want what ever they come for more than me as i have worked f^cking hard for it and wont give it up easily

mickyboy

tarmac terror

iTrader: (2)

All the weapons in the world stashed round your house will be useless when you are caught by the element of surprise. Happened to me in Cyprus, woke out of my sleep, two figures in my apartment, searching through our belongings. Checked to see my girlfriend at the time was ok, then got up after them - loads of things around I could have grabbed, only thing that came to hand was a cup - totally useless. They jumped from a 2nd floor balcony, which I wasn't prepared to risk, by the time I had taken the stairs they were long gone. On returning to the apartment, I went out to the balcony, where I found they had left the largest of the kitchen knives.

billythekid

What ever you do, what ever your preperations - dont tell *ANYONE*. 2 reasons.

1) In the pub... "yeah john who lives up the road - if anyone breaks into his house he has XYZ just in case.." Some people see this as an invitation! Also means they will wait for you to go out and break in and take your XYZ!

2) The last thing you want the CPS to think is that you are some crazed rambo type.... you can be... just dont tell anyone!

I have preperations to deal with anything, but other than my wife - no one knows the full extent of what those preperations are.

Mouser

Really feel for the victims of this type of crime. Hope your father-in-law gets over his terrible ordeal Mr D.
Until the Courts get really tough on the scum committing these cowardly crimes it will only get worse. It doesn't help when a Judge recently said burglars were brave breaking into people's homes.

td bigdog

LOL at the keyboard warriers take note of how many folks get burgled and don't know till they wake up ,Then realise just how hard it would be if you did manage to wake up to focus and find your gun cabinet keys ,quietly work the 2 locks, load the gun then approach the unwanted guests or you could leave it loaded by your bed but run the risk of it being stolen while you sleep,getting shot with it while you sleep or one of your kids shooting themselves with it cause you left it loaded.
As some one who is licenced to own section 1,2 and sect 5 firearms I find it laughable just how many people say IF I had a gun I would use it DREAM ON this is reality not halo or world of warfare and shooting some smack rat cause he's nicked your toaster won't impress the judge

LSherratt

iTrader: (1)

I'm calling bullsh!t. What weapons do you personally legally own that require a section 5 firearms? If I remember correctly, this can only be granted by the Home Office and includes fully automatic weapons and pistols.

Just did a bit of research and I'm correct. I'm actually genuinely interested because I own a .22/250 rifle and also sent off a variation in September for a Section 2 (authorisation for a 5 shot semi-automatic shotgun) to the Police.