Shed burglars

Author
Discussion

R56Cooper

2,381 posts

222 months

Monday 1st March 2021
quotequote all
Agreed with the above posts re. keeping valuables in the house if poss etc. Good insurance and a well documented inventory including scanned receipts etc would also help.

Boils my piss to see people on FB marketplace selling whole sets of decent trades quality tools with no obvious explanation of why they are selling.

Psycho Warren

3,087 posts

112 months

Monday 1st March 2021
quotequote all
Instead of the trip mines, use a smoke grenade as a small shed will in seconds be untenable for everyone not wearing breathing apparatus. And even then they won't be able to see anything.

Carrot

7,294 posts

201 months

Monday 1st March 2021
quotequote all
jondude said:
Sounds a decent enough idea but I have always found having a shed that looks like a tip when you open the door has served me well.
Without knowing it, I have been a shed security expert all my life hehe

steve2

1,771 posts

217 months

Monday 1st March 2021
quotequote all
After getting all my tools stolen from my shed a few years ago, I bought an Assguard bike shed, moved it a bit closer to the house and all my power tools, golf clubs etc live in there.
This weekend someone broke into a van in B and Q car park whilst the owner was inside the store, apparently although really busy no one saw anything, he has lost a couple of grands worth of tools

Lonely

1,099 posts

167 months

Monday 1st March 2021
quotequote all
PrinceRupert said:
So, some good news - the suspect will be getting lifted this week. Police reasonably confident in their case as well. Hopefully gets an appropriate punishment.

Edited by PrinceRupert on Monday 1st March 13:50
Please don't build your hopes up. As much as we'd all like to see a suitable chastisement it's unlikely to be any more than a community order unless there are other matters to be dealt with at the same time.

Hugo Stiglitz

36,956 posts

210 months

Monday 1st March 2021
quotequote all
steve2 said:
After getting all my tools stolen from my shed a few years ago, I bought an Assguard bike shed, moved it a bit closer to the house and all my power tools, golf clubs etc live in there.
This weekend someone broke into a van in B and Q car park whilst the owner was inside the store, apparently although really busy no one saw anything, he has lost a couple of grands worth of tools
This month in Tescos carpark, owner was in for ten mins shopping and came out to be told his bikes were gone from the van and 4 lads on mopeds had broke in and taken them.

R56Cooper

2,381 posts

222 months

Monday 1st March 2021
quotequote all
Psycho Warren said:
Instead of the trip mines, use a smoke grenade as a small shed will in seconds be untenable for everyone not wearing breathing apparatus. And even then they won't be able to see anything.
Any idea where you can get a smoke screen type device?

That genuinely sounds like a great solution. Regardless of whether they have grinders / axes whatever, if they can't see they won't get far!

I don't see any immediate issue with legality either, so long as the smoke isn't "noxious"...



Plymo

1,148 posts

88 months

Monday 1st March 2021
quotequote all
These might fit the bill, with a ring pull to set them off https://www.airsoftworld.net/enola-gaye-wp40-ring-...
Designed for Airsoft games so they should be safe enough...
Looks like a cracking idea, I had never thought of using smoke!


Or the nuclear option, I've set one of these off before and the amount of smoke was amazing. Dyes stuff orange too... Just whatever you do don't set it off yourself laugh
https://www.gaelforcemarine.co.uk/Mobile/en/Hansso...

Evanivitch

19,697 posts

121 months

Monday 1st March 2021
quotequote all
Plymo said:
These might fit the bill, with a ring pull to set them off https://www.airsoftworld.net/enola-gaye-wp40-ring-...
Designed for Airsoft games so they should be safe enough...
Looks like a cracking idea, I had never thought of using smoke!


Or the nuclear option, I've set one of these off before and the amount of smoke was amazing. Dyes stuff orange too... Just whatever you do don't set it off yourself laugh
https://www.gaelforcemarine.co.uk/Mobile/en/Hansso...
WP? Hope that's not white phos...

PrinceRupert

Original Poster:

11,574 posts

84 months

Monday 1st March 2021
quotequote all
Lonely said:
PrinceRupert said:
So, some good news - the suspect will be getting lifted this week. Police reasonably confident in their case as well. Hopefully gets an appropriate punishment.

Edited by PrinceRupert on Monday 1st March 13:50
Please don't build your hopes up. As much as we'd all like to see a suitable chastisement it's unlikely to be any more than a community order unless there are other matters to be dealt with at the same time.
Fingers crossed ...

Been asked if I'd be happy to be a witness in court. Sure, but not sure what value I can add, other than confirming i watched the security footage ...

Blockbuster

214 posts

60 months

Monday 1st March 2021
quotequote all
Bigends said:
A decent, solid shed bar fitted with a shutter padlock will act as a good deterrent - not invincible by any means but a good start. Ivde got the bigger items in my shed padlocked together with old bike D locks. Again , not a perfect solution, but if they want my lawn mower, itll come with a couple of garden chairs, and half the contents of the shed
I do this too.

Everything of value locked together with big D locks, and also a big lock on the side gate and the lock held on with anti tamper screws, so they’ll have to lift the whole lot over the fence to remove it.

Blockbuster

214 posts

60 months

Monday 1st March 2021
quotequote all
Lonely said:
Please don't build your hopes up. As much as we'd all like to see a suitable chastisement it's unlikely to be any more than a community order unless there are other matters to be dealt with at the same time.
One of the local prolific offenders who has over 180 previous convictions recently got sentenced to a 7pm to 7am curfew for four months, after his latest house breaking escapade.

Lonely

1,099 posts

167 months

Monday 1st March 2021
quotequote all
Blockbuster said:
Lonely said:
Please don't build your hopes up. As much as we'd all like to see a suitable chastisement it's unlikely to be any more than a community order unless there are other matters to be dealt with at the same time.
One of the local prolific offenders who has over 180 previous convictions recently got sentenced to a 7pm to 7am curfew for four months, after his latest house breaking escapade.
Ouch! Bet that taught him a lesson. grumpy

RazerSauber

2,254 posts

59 months

Monday 1st March 2021
quotequote all
Blockbuster said:
Lonely said:
Please don't build your hopes up. As much as we'd all like to see a suitable chastisement it's unlikely to be any more than a community order unless there are other matters to be dealt with at the same time.
One of the local prolific offenders who has over 180 previous convictions recently got sentenced to a 7pm to 7am curfew for four months, after his latest house breaking escapade.
Wish we had a 3 strikes rule. I think America has one. 3 convictions and mandatory jail time. Long jail time too, none of this 8 weeks rubbish where they're out before they've made their bed. Proper ruin your life jail time.

PrinceRupert

Original Poster:

11,574 posts

84 months

Monday 1st March 2021
quotequote all
RazerSauber said:
Blockbuster said:
Lonely said:
Please don't build your hopes up. As much as we'd all like to see a suitable chastisement it's unlikely to be any more than a community order unless there are other matters to be dealt with at the same time.
One of the local prolific offenders who has over 180 previous convictions recently got sentenced to a 7pm to 7am curfew for four months, after his latest house breaking escapade.
Wish we had a 3 strikes rule. I think America has one. 3 convictions and mandatory jail time. Long jail time too, none of this 8 weeks rubbish where they're out before they've made their bed. Proper ruin your life jail time.
A quick Google suggests we do too - three years minimum on the third strike.

https://www.burglary.co.uk/law/3rd-strike-burglar-...

MC Bodge

21,541 posts

174 months

Monday 1st March 2021
quotequote all
RazerSauber said:
Wish we had a 3 strikes rule. I think America has one. 3 convictions and mandatory jail time. Long jail time too, none of this 8 weeks rubbish where they're out before they've made their bed. Proper ruin your life jail time.
The US has zero crime as a result of its harsh system, non?

The UK already locks up far more people than most comparable countries.

Lonely

1,099 posts

167 months

Monday 1st March 2021
quotequote all
PrinceRupert said:
RazerSauber said:
Blockbuster said:
Lonely said:
Please don't build your hopes up. As much as we'd all like to see a suitable chastisement it's unlikely to be any more than a community order unless there are other matters to be dealt with at the same time.
One of the local prolific offenders who has over 180 previous convictions recently got sentenced to a 7pm to 7am curfew for four months, after his latest house breaking escapade.
Wish we had a 3 strikes rule. I think America has one. 3 convictions and mandatory jail time. Long jail time too, none of this 8 weeks rubbish where they're out before they've made their bed. Proper ruin your life jail time.
A quick Google suggests we do too - three years minimum on the third strike.

https://www.burglary.co.uk/law/3rd-strike-burglar-...
Dwelling burglary carries it. Not sheds I'm afraid.

spaximus

4,229 posts

252 months

Monday 1st March 2021
quotequote all
When we got burgled the cops were great in turning up and doing what they could but it was lucky for me the watches they stole were easily identified and appeared on Ebay that night.

They got caught and a slap on the wrist. This was in an alarmed house which went off in the middle of the day and got ignored.

One of the coppers was telling me he had a motorbike, chained to a ground anchor in a brick garage in a rank. The door was securely bolted as you would expect.

What you would not expect was them to knock the single brick wall at the back through, out of sight and cut the chain and nick the bike. As he said a determined thief will always win, a lazy one will be put off by even the most basic security as they just find an easier target.

PrinceRupert

Original Poster:

11,574 posts

84 months

Monday 1st March 2021
quotequote all
Lonely said:
Dwelling burglary carries it. Not sheds I'm afraid.
I am clearly no expert but this website suggests a shed is a dwelling:

https://www.adamlawsolicitors.co.uk/criminal-defen...

"The question of what constituted a dwelling under section 9 of the Theft Act 1968 was specifically considered by the Court of Appeal in the case of R v Rodmell (24 November 1994 – unreported). This was a case that involved the burglary of a garden shed, and the theft of power tools. The shed stood in three and a quarter acres of grounds of a house, and some 60 yards from the house.

The Court of Appeal cited with approval the following sentencing remarks:

‘A garden shed is part of a person’s home. Burglars should be under no illusion that burglary of outbuildings is just as much burglary of domestic premises as breaking into the front door, although it can be said to be not quite as serious as breaking onto the place where people live.’"

Bigends

5,403 posts

127 months

Monday 1st March 2021
quotequote all
PrinceRupert said:
Lonely said:
Dwelling burglary carries it. Not sheds I'm afraid.
I am clearly no expert but this website suggests a shed is a dwelling:

https://www.adamlawsolicitors.co.uk/criminal-defen...

"The question of what constituted a dwelling under section 9 of the Theft Act 1968 was specifically considered by the Court of Appeal in the case of R v Rodmell (24 November 1994 – unreported). This was a case that involved the burglary of a garden shed, and the theft of power tools. The shed stood in three and a quarter acres of grounds of a house, and some 60 yards from the house.

The Court of Appeal cited with approval the following sentencing remarks:

‘A garden shed is part of a person’s home. Burglars should be under no illusion that burglary of outbuildings is just as much burglary of domestic premises as breaking into the front door, although it can be said to be not quite as serious as breaking onto the place where people live.’"
Exactly, Police will record these shed breaks as Dwelling Burglaries now. Rules changed a few years back when you could have an integral garage burgled and if there was no connection door to the house it would only be recorded as Burglary - other premises, and not dwelling