A COUPLE of weeks ago we were burgled. Our house has steel cottage pane windows and doors and burglar bars. In view of this, we have felt safe for the past 20 years.
Our house exterior is well lit at night on all sides and we have an alarm with response. That evening, our neighbour was disturbed by a torch shining in his face from outside while in the bathroom. He called Blue Security, our response security company, and they were there in a few minutes but no intruders were found.
At 3am, one of the burglars forced open a locked window using a crowbar. He then climbed through the burglar bars into our study. The window is very well lit with an LED spotlight and is about a metre from a normal outside light. He passed items through the window, including our laptop, an iPhone and items out of desk drawers and cupboard.
He went down the passage and into the lounge, where our old dog was sleeping. They likely did not know about the dog. He picked up my two cell phones and we think he went to open the front door, we assume, to let his colleague in. Fortunately, I have welded steel lugs onto the doors and we have large padlocks so he could not open them. The dog was disturbed and started to growl.
By this time my wife heard a noise but thought it was me. She went down the passage and when he (the burglar) shone the light in her face, she realised it was an intruder. She shouted to me and locked herself in a bedroom.
I pushed the panic buttons, picked up a crowbar and opened the passage door. A person was coming down the passage, shining a torch at me. They opened the door to our study and closed the door. I assumed it was my wife .When I investigated, there was no one in the room so he had climbed out the same way he gained access. My wife saw the two men run past the bedroom window with two laptop bags.
The Blue Security response was quick to arrive and arrested the intruder. He was identified by my wife. He had gloves on, was slim and about 35 years old. The police arrived about two hours later and were helpful. In the morning we found other items on the grass outside the house, including a new induction cooker and a back pack with toys in it.
As they were disturbed (during the robbery), I walked on the roadside to see if they had dropped any other items. I saw a pistol in our garden. It was cocked and the safety was off. The police arrived, put on gloves and picked up the gun, which was found to be a gas pistol.
I think the reason they entered the premises was that even though the window was locked, the curtain was open, and they saw the laptop on the desk. People should not feel safe when they have cottage pane windows with burglar bars and good lighting outside. We learnt a lesson and hope this will help others.
Mark Logie
Highway
