Unfortunately, most victims of burglary never get to see the property which gets stolen from their home by the ‘individuals’ who decide to embark upon a career of criminality by breaking into your house.
Burglars are, without a question, amongst the most hated people in society – and with good reason. To return home from work, only to find that your property has been ransacked and that the burglar has taken a dump in your living room (as does sometimes happen) will leave most people feeling utterly and completely shocked.
Being the victim of a burglary can make feel like you have been violated and can leave you either feeling extremely angry or extremely depressed. I lost count of the number of burglary victims I took reports from during my time in the Met Police, as well as having to wrestle with a burglary that broke into my neighbours flat whilst I was living in sunny Dagenham.
So to hear that a victim of a burglary had some of his stolen items returned to him made us shout for joy, as it’s a rare occurrence. Ok, so maybe we didn’t shout for joy, but you get the general idea.
The fact that the victim in this case is also a World War II veteran made the story even more uplifting – because someone who risked all for this country, in my eyes, is someone who should be able to live their retirement without having to endure the emotional wrecking ball that is being burgled!
A post on the Metropolitan Police’s’ Facebook page said:
“WWII pensioner delighted after stolen TV is returned.
“DC Imane from Hillingdon CID got to deal with one of the best parts of being a police officer recently – returning property to its rightful owner.
“Back in February 2016 Mr Rowell, a World War II pensioner, had his house broken into.
“Several items were taken, one of which was a 40” inch TV.
“DC Imane took on the case which, at first glance, had very little opportunities to identify the suspect.
“Luckily an attentive neighbour had noticed a suspicious vehicle in the area prior to the break in and passed the details on to police.
“This led to a jigsaw of evidence being pieced together, tracking the vehicle back to an incident where the driver made off without payment after filling the car with fuel.
“CCTV from the forecourt of the petrol station helped to identify the suspect and he was arrested on 26th February, before being charged and convicted. He was later handed a 30 month sentence at court.
“Officers attended the suspect’s home address after his arrest and recovered the TV which has now been returned to its rightful, and very happy, owner.
“If you ever spot something suspicious, however small you may think it may be, let us know, it could be the missing part of the puzzle that helps us find justice for a victim of crime.”
But then what could be better than knowing that this victim had some of his property returned? The fact that the ‘individual’ responsible got banged up for his crimes!!
Although, it does make you wonder if Mr Rowell then had to return his brand new replacement TV to the insurance company!?
Rumour has it that Mr Rowell might be inviting the Officers who carried out the investigation round his house for some beers and an evening of playing ‘Call of Duty’ on Playstation – although this is yet to be verified or confirmed.
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