Three break-ins have occurred over the last week in the High Street vicinity, with two houses in Thompson Street and Mad Hatter’s coffee shop on High Street all falling victim to burglars.
Three break-ins have occurred over the last week in the High Street vicinity, with two houses in Thompson Street and Mad Hatter’s coffee shop on High Street all falling victim to burglars.
In the early hours of Monday morning on 8 February, two burglars entered 3 Thompson Street by bending back the burglar bars on the kitchen window. Duncan Collins, one of the seven students living in the house said that one of the men came into his room.
“I woke up andsat up, thinking it was one of my digsmates, and then I saw his knife which he pointed towards me, so I lay back down again and watched him take my wallet,” he said.
Luckily the police happened to be patrolling Huntley Street when the thieves made their getaway down the road, laden with the stolen goods in black refuse bags. “The police tried to stop them but they dropped
our things and ran,” said Collins.
Unfortunately they still got away with my wallet,” he added. The following Monday, 15 February, a criminal
entered 5 Thompson Street, next door to the previous victims. Both houses have been undergoing construction for the last few weeks and residents believe that this may have made the area a target for opportunistic thieves.
Gillian Griffiths, a student living in the digs, was in her room on the day while their domestic worker was hanging out washing in the back garden. The man got in because the gate had been removed during construction and he walked into the house through the back door while the domestic worker’s back was turned. He hid behind a bedroom door near the kitchen and then grabbed her as she entered the house, covering her mouth to prevent her from screaming.
“He had a knife which he threatened her with and he tried to tie her up,” said Griffiths. The man then stole a camera and a Leatherman before running out onto the street. According to police he also stole the domestic workers’ clothing and shoes.
The police and Hi-Tec arrived quickly at the scene but didn’t catch him. “Our domestic worker is seven months pregnant and she was sore after he grabbed her. He said to her ‘I’ll see you later’ before he ran off and so we’re all scared now,” said Griffiths. The name of the domestic worker was not available at the time of going to print.
Griffiths added that the police told her that criminals are targeting students in the area because they assume them to be more relaxed about security. But students are not the only victims.
Just before midnight on Tuesday thieves attempted to break into Mad Hatter’s through the west-facing dining area window. There are no burglar bars but sensors were set off when they tried to dislodge the putty and cracked the glass. “Hi-Tec was nearby and responded quickly,” said owner Phillip McDougall.
The men ran off immediately and were not caught. According to assistant manager Cezanne Hails this was not the first break-in Mad Hatter’s has experienced. In September 2008 while the owner was away there were two attempted burglaries. Thompson Street has seen a variety of different crimes in the recent
past, according to residents. Crimes include a hijacking, a smash and grab and many other petty crimes.
