Police appeal after thieves raid allotments of man (79)

The burglary took place overnight this week, between Monday and Tuesday, when thieves broke into sheds at his allotment in Messenger Street and stole tools and machinery including a lawn mower, rotivator, strimmer, compressor, bolt croppers, drill bits and a generator which had a combined value of more than £1,000.

PC Victoria Beverley, of Burnley Police, said: “This burglary has had a huge impact on the victim and the culprits must not realise what damage they have caused him. He kept his sheds meticulously tidy and used his tools to make wooden furniture and grow his own vegetables. The stolen items weren’t just tools to him, they were his life.

“We are appealing to anyone who may have seen anything suspicious in the area at the time of the burglary, or anyone who may have come across the stolen tools to contact us.”

Anyone with information can contact police on 101 quoting crime reference EG1503143.

Alternatively Crimestoppers can be contacted anonymously on 0800 555 111 or online at Crimestoppers-uk.org. No personal details are taken, information is not traced or recorded and you will not go to court.