Someone's putting nails down our road

[devonknows]

Me and the mrs have had a few punctures over the past 6 months, it's always nails in the tyres.

Turns out, a guy who lives on an adjoining road used to go out with a woman who lives down our road and they broke up.

This guy wants to get back at her and over a period of many months has been throwing paint at her house in little plastic parcels and also dropping boxes of nails and tacks down the road, causing lots of people down our road to get punctures.

The police have been informed and installed council CCTV. He has a restraining order but still drops nails. It seems they can't catch him in the act so he keeps doing it.


I was trying to think of some way to resolve it. Obviously I could go knock on his door and pretend to be a powerfully built director.

I was thinking maybe of sending letters to all his neighbours saying what he is doing and asking them to put pressure on him - as I'm sure they wouldn't like it if someone started doing it to their road (implicit threat?)

Short of staking out the road and photographing him in the act I'm not sure what else I can do.

[donkmeister]

Big magnet to collect them all up.

Then use them to nail frozen sausages to him.

[loose cannon]

Get a bit of 4x2 drive some long nails through one end of it then when you next see him wrap it around his face a few times
And tell him the next time he see's nails in wood they will be in his coffin

[Jonno02]

He sounds a little unhinged, so he might remember you if you go to his door and specifically target your house too.

My cowardly answer? Wait until late night and go and throw nails all over his drive. I am quite spiteful though like that.

[sandman77]

devonknows said:

I was thinking maybe of sending letters to all his neighbours saying what he is doing and asking them to put pressure on him - as I'm sure they wouldn't like it if someone started doing it to their road (implicit threat?)

You are thinking about threatening his neighbours unless they resolve this issue for you? You sound like a cowardly and nasty piece of work.

[devonknows]

sandman77 said:

You are thinking about threatening his neighbours unless they resolve this issue for you? You sound like a cowardly and nasty piece of work.

Thanks

Well I'm using his own tactic against him but without actually damaging anyone's property.

See he is dropping nails all down our road - not just by her drive. Therefore he's clearly trying to turn all her neighbours against her. I wonder how he would feel if a couple of his neighbours went round and said "leave it out mate"

I'm quite happy to tell him myself so I'm not cowardly.

[99dndd]

Pick up any nails you find and put them on his drive.

Say you were "returning them."

[jhonn]

devonknows said:

... and also dropping boxes of nails and tacks down the road, causing lots of people down our road to get punctures.

The police have been informed and installed council CCTV. He has a restraining order but still drops nails. It seems they can't catch him in the act so he keeps doing it.

Do you have absolute proof (hard evidence) that it is him that is dropping the nails?

[parabolica]

Jonno02 said:

He sounds a little unhinged, so he might remember you if you go to his door and specifically target your house too.

My cowardly answer? Wait until late night and go and throw nails all over his drive. I am quite spiteful though like that.

I'd bet all the money in my pockets that he's up at all hours, that's probably when he's out throwing nails on the roads, pissing on her flowerbed (not a euphemism) and writing love-letters to her on the side of her house in his own excrement. Therefore unless you have the balls to do what he does in broad daylight, you might find yourself on a hiding to nothing.

stty situation OP; I'm guessing there aren't any alternative roads for you to use? Does he always leave them in the same place?

[devonknows]

jhonn said:

Do you have absolute proof (hard evidence) that it is him that is dropping the nails?

On the balance of probablities yes - and that was the exact evidential basis that the restraining order was issued on as well by the court.

Beyond reasonable doubt? No - because if I did I would give that evidence to the police and they would repeatedly convict him for it.

The fact that the paint splatters are targeted at her house, that the police are aware, that the police believe it's him but can't prove it is enough proof for me.

[Hoofy]

parabolica said:

pissing on her flowerbed

Isn't that good for flowers?

[devonknows]

parabolica said:

I'd bet all the money in my pockets that he's up at all hours, that's probably when he's out throwing nails on the roads, pissing on her flowerbed (not a euphemism) and writing love-letters to her on the side of her house in his own excrement. Therefore unless you have the balls to do what he does in broad daylight, you might find yourself on a hiding to nothing.

stty situation OP; I'm guessing there aren't any alternative roads for you to use? Does he always leave them in the same place?

We turn out of our drive and head away from the neighbours house anyway because of the nails - but they are spread across a distance of well over 30 houses so we can't even avoid it that way :-(

[devonknows]

Another thing I had previously considered was getting all the neighbours to save their receipts for puncture repairs/new tyres and sending a money claim online to him requiring him to pay.

With civil actions being balance of probability it may be more successful than police action. Unfortunately that would then revel our addresses and possibly make us targets.

[Jimmy Recard]

Persuade your neighbour into taking him back?

Find out where he works and send them all the information and evidence you can?

[jhonn]

Hhmm - it's a tricky one - this is what I would do..

Speak to him (not threatening, but let him know that you (and others) know that he is doing it)
Try and catch him in the act
Meanwhile, put some of this (or similar) in your tyres...

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/TYRE-SEALANT-TYRE-PUNCTU...

[Spx]

loose cannon said:

Get a bit of 4x2 drive some long nails through one end of it then when you next see him wrap it around his face a few times
And tell him the next time he see's nails in wood they will be in his coffin

Class!

[ApOrbital]

Road sweeper would soon sort the problem out.

[Tuvra]

Can you monitor his house somehow? Maybe park a car near by with a dash cam or speak to a neighbour?

You might be able to spot his patterns and then catch him in the act. If it was set up adequately with motion sensors/trigger alarms you could even be alerted when he, or anyone else walks/drives past the camera.

[can't remember]

ApOrbital said:

Road sweeper would soon sort the problem out.

As would a street sweeper, to use some 90's gangsta rap lingo.

[can't remember]

devonknows said:

I'm quite happy to tell him myself so I'm not cowardly.

Go on then.