0:00:02 > 0:00:05There's a type of crime in the UK happening right on our doorsteps,
0:00:05 > 0:00:09and it seems like it is getting worse, but we are united against it.
0:00:09 > 0:00:11Everyday, cold-calling conmen
0:00:11 > 0:00:15and rip-off rogue traders attack our most vulnerable citizens,
0:00:15 > 0:00:19but we're naming and shaming the crooks and, best of all,
0:00:19 > 0:00:20celebrating your work
0:00:20 > 0:00:25and the work of police and Trading Standards teams all over the UK.
0:00:25 > 0:00:28Together, we are cracking down on doorstep crime.
0:00:28 > 0:00:31Today, I meet the brave Leicestershire woman who set up
0:00:31 > 0:00:36an award-winning volunteer force to fight back against crime
0:00:36 > 0:00:39after her father-in-law was cruelly murdered by conmen.
0:00:39 > 0:00:42The anger actually manifested itself in,
0:00:42 > 0:00:45"I don't want this to happen to anybody else,"
0:00:45 > 0:00:49so we use the anger in a positive way rather than in a negative way.
0:00:49 > 0:00:52Plus, the astonishing story of how Somerset police were left
0:00:52 > 0:00:55with evidence of a burglary even though the bungling crooks
0:00:55 > 0:00:58tried to wipe it all away.
0:00:58 > 0:01:01It was discovered that one of the offenders had actually left
0:01:01 > 0:01:03a notebook on the kitchen table.
0:01:03 > 0:01:05Normally, they're very crafty,
0:01:05 > 0:01:07they'll wipe every surface that they've touched,
0:01:07 > 0:01:11and that was seized by the crime scene investigators straightaway.
0:01:11 > 0:01:13Quite extraordinary.
0:01:13 > 0:01:16And this brave retired salesman from the Midlands reveals how
0:01:16 > 0:01:20a rogue roofer got his comeuppance after ripping him off
0:01:20 > 0:01:23to the tune of £16,000.
0:01:23 > 0:01:28It made me feel, well, absolutely overjoyed and glad about it,
0:01:28 > 0:01:33because it was a real relief to have them taken away.
0:01:39 > 0:01:41Hello and bless you, Britain.
0:01:41 > 0:01:44On behalf of our whole team, here's thanks to
0:01:44 > 0:01:46every single one of you who took the time
0:01:46 > 0:01:50and trouble to write in or talk to us during the last series.
0:01:50 > 0:01:54We were really overwhelmed by all your useful suggestions
0:01:54 > 0:01:58and stories, and it's heartening to know you're still keeping in touch.
0:01:58 > 0:02:02Because of you, we have many more stories to share about
0:02:02 > 0:02:03the heroic efforts you've made
0:02:03 > 0:02:06fighting back against doorstep crime.
0:02:06 > 0:02:08So let's get straight to it
0:02:08 > 0:02:11and meet a superb community of people in Leicestershire
0:02:11 > 0:02:13who've won awards for reducing crime.
0:02:13 > 0:02:16I warn you, though, there's a tragic story at the heart of it all,
0:02:16 > 0:02:19and this is certainly a story that will remain with me forever.
0:02:21 > 0:02:25Since 2002, the locals of Market Harborough in Leicestershire
0:02:25 > 0:02:27have been fighting back against local rogues
0:02:27 > 0:02:30and burglars through Neighbourhood Watch.
0:02:30 > 0:02:32One of the ways they get their message across
0:02:32 > 0:02:36is through their community beat stall which they run once a month.
0:02:36 > 0:02:40If I don't know you, please don't knock on the door,
0:02:40 > 0:02:43so perhaps one of those might be useful for you.
0:02:43 > 0:02:45Founder and full-time volunteer Marion Lewis
0:02:45 > 0:02:47heads up the initiative.
0:02:47 > 0:02:49Being in Neighbourhood Watch in 2012
0:02:49 > 0:02:51is a lot more than just being a curtain-twitcher.
0:02:51 > 0:02:55It's about actually helping, your community to stay together
0:02:55 > 0:02:58to be cohesive and actually look after each other.
0:02:58 > 0:02:59When you've got nothing else in common,
0:02:59 > 0:03:02if you're a member of Neighbourhood Watch, that is the cement
0:03:02 > 0:03:04that can help build your community.
0:03:04 > 0:03:06We make sure that we give them the message,
0:03:06 > 0:03:08if somebody comes to your door you're not expecting,
0:03:08 > 0:03:11always use the door chain, don't let them in,
0:03:11 > 0:03:15and if you're really, really concerned, dial 999 immediately.
0:03:15 > 0:03:18Marion is clearly very passionate about safeguarding
0:03:18 > 0:03:22the public against these types of crimes.
0:03:22 > 0:03:24In fact, her involvement with Neighbourhood Watch
0:03:24 > 0:03:26began after her own family was hit by tragedy.
0:03:26 > 0:03:29I've been looking into what happened to make Marion
0:03:29 > 0:03:32devote her life to tackling doorstep crime.
0:03:32 > 0:03:36As I said, it's quite a shocking tale, so do be prepared.
0:03:38 > 0:03:43Take me back to the case of your father-in-law. What happened there?
0:03:43 > 0:03:44How did that build up?
0:03:44 > 0:03:47A local girl couldn't get a job, so my father-in-law said
0:03:47 > 0:03:49she could help him with the cooking and cleaning.
0:03:49 > 0:03:54And she befriended somebody on a telephone chat line
0:03:54 > 0:03:58and my father-in-law had a soft heart, a very soft heart,
0:03:58 > 0:04:02and she said, "Can he come down and stay with you "while he looks for a job?"
0:04:02 > 0:04:04So my father-in-law said, "Of course he can."
0:04:04 > 0:04:08And then they systematically were stealing from him,
0:04:08 > 0:04:10taking money out of his bank.
0:04:10 > 0:04:12Were you aware of any of this going on?
0:04:12 > 0:04:15No, we weren't aware of anything until he contacted us
0:04:15 > 0:04:17about his horrendous phone bills
0:04:17 > 0:04:20and said that BT, instead of wanting £12 a month,
0:04:20 > 0:04:22wanted £120 a month because of the phone uses.
0:04:22 > 0:04:25And he said to us, "I think I know who's doing this
0:04:25 > 0:04:27"and I'll speak to them."
0:04:27 > 0:04:32Marion's father-in-law Jimmy had no idea that he'd been harbouring
0:04:32 > 0:04:36doorstep conmen who were abusing his hospitality without a qualm.
0:04:36 > 0:04:39Most disturbing of all is that they never gave him
0:04:39 > 0:04:41the chance to discuss his concerns.
0:04:41 > 0:04:46As we now know, they actually strangled him.
0:04:46 > 0:04:48Strangled him?
0:04:48 > 0:04:51While he was asleep in a chair, they put a cord round his neck
0:04:51 > 0:04:55and they then put his body in the cupboard under the stairs,
0:04:55 > 0:04:56covered it up with carpet.
0:04:58 > 0:04:59That's horrific.
0:04:59 > 0:05:03They then took a group of young people around to the house,
0:05:03 > 0:05:07showed his group of young people the body and, thankfully,
0:05:07 > 0:05:11a young girl, 14, 15 years old, was so traumatised by all this
0:05:11 > 0:05:15that she actually rung the police and told them what had happened.
0:05:15 > 0:05:18What sort of anger were you feeling at this point that people
0:05:18 > 0:05:20could do this to your father-in-law?
0:05:20 > 0:05:23The anger actually manifested itself in,
0:05:23 > 0:05:26"I don't want this to happen to anybody else,"
0:05:26 > 0:05:30and encouraged me to set up the Harborough Be Safe scheme that we did,
0:05:30 > 0:05:34so we use the anger in a positive way rather than in a negative way.
0:05:35 > 0:05:38In the decade that has passed since Jimmy was murdered,
0:05:38 > 0:05:43Marion and her fellow volunteers have done the most admirable job
0:05:43 > 0:05:46of building up their network in Market Harborough.
0:05:46 > 0:05:49You know they've actively reduced crime
0:05:49 > 0:05:51and won awards for their efforts.
0:05:53 > 0:05:56And we'll find out about their biggest success story
0:05:56 > 0:05:57just a little later on.
0:05:57 > 0:06:00And of course, as always, our thanks to Marion for sharing that
0:06:00 > 0:06:02life-changing experience with us.
0:06:02 > 0:06:04Now, here's another example of doorstep crime.
0:06:05 > 0:06:07My name is Frank.
0:06:07 > 0:06:10In 2002, my house suffered an earth tremor
0:06:10 > 0:06:15which later I had some work done on the house.
0:06:15 > 0:06:19It was done by conmen and I would like to tell you my story.
0:06:19 > 0:06:23Thanks for that. How could we resist such an intriguing story?
0:06:23 > 0:06:26So we just had to go and meet Frank straightaway.
0:06:29 > 0:06:33In recent years, 72-year-old Frank Carrier has not had
0:06:33 > 0:06:35a lot of luck with home maintenance.
0:06:35 > 0:06:41Back in 2002, his home was one of hundreds affected by a minor earthquake.
0:06:41 > 0:06:43Centred on Dudley,
0:06:43 > 0:06:46it registered a magnitude of 4.2 on the Richter scale
0:06:46 > 0:06:49and it left Frank needing extensive repairs to his chimney
0:06:49 > 0:06:51and, indeed, his roof.
0:06:51 > 0:06:54Happily, this was carried out by a bone fide local company
0:06:54 > 0:06:57and it came with a ten-year guarantee.
0:06:57 > 0:07:01Now, everything seemed fine until August 2007.
0:07:01 > 0:07:05But what happened next is enough to make anybody tremble
0:07:05 > 0:07:09and it cost Frank more than £16,000.
0:07:10 > 0:07:15I was going out one day and a person in a van put his arm through
0:07:15 > 0:07:19the window and said, "Here you are, mate, this is what we do."
0:07:19 > 0:07:21I looked at the pamphlet to see what he'd got.
0:07:21 > 0:07:27One of the things he said he does was pointing and house maintenance.
0:07:27 > 0:07:30So I said to him, "Well, I could do with my house being pointed."
0:07:30 > 0:07:34The man in the van was Dean Clay, an opportunist rogue trader
0:07:34 > 0:07:39who ran a building firm company called Stormforce Maintenance.
0:07:39 > 0:07:42By the way, not to be confused with companies of a similar name.
0:07:42 > 0:07:46I noticed that the chimney at the side which had had this shake,
0:07:46 > 0:07:48the bricks were looking a bit dodgy,
0:07:48 > 0:07:51so I said, "That could do with being done as well."
0:07:51 > 0:07:54So he said he would do it,
0:07:54 > 0:07:58giving me a price which seemed quite a high price,
0:07:58 > 0:08:01but I went along with what he was suggesting.
0:08:02 > 0:08:07For roofing and re-pointing work, Clay was quoting Frank £4,500.
0:08:07 > 0:08:11Guess what? The job was actually worth a fraction of that.
0:08:11 > 0:08:15It was only the beginning of Clay's cynical scam.
0:08:16 > 0:08:19The mode of operation for these types of rogue traders like
0:08:19 > 0:08:24Dean Clay is to build up a trusting relationship with the victim.
0:08:24 > 0:08:27They then use this trusting relationship to manipulate
0:08:27 > 0:08:29their victims into agreeing to have more work done
0:08:29 > 0:08:32and paying over the odds.
0:08:32 > 0:08:35Although Clay and his cronies did complete the pointing
0:08:35 > 0:08:39and the chimney work, it was to a disgracefully poor standard,
0:08:39 > 0:08:42though Frank had no idea about this.
0:08:42 > 0:08:47And with £4,500 of Frank's money in his pocket, Clay wanted even more.
0:08:47 > 0:08:49Sure enough, a few months later,
0:08:49 > 0:08:51he reappeared at the door with a startling claim.
0:08:52 > 0:08:56He looked at the roof and saw the roof was bowing a bit,
0:08:56 > 0:08:59so he got me to come up and I got on the ladder
0:08:59 > 0:09:01and had a look at the roof,
0:09:01 > 0:09:03which did look a bit dodgy.
0:09:03 > 0:09:07But he said that what the roofer had done,
0:09:07 > 0:09:10he'd put heavier tiles on the roof
0:09:10 > 0:09:13and if we had a good downfall of snow,
0:09:13 > 0:09:16the roof wouldn't be able to take it.
0:09:16 > 0:09:19He was saying that, "The roofer has done you, mate."
0:09:19 > 0:09:22He said that, "You shouldn't have done this."
0:09:22 > 0:09:24"You should have known about what was happening."
0:09:24 > 0:09:26What a load of old rubbish!
0:09:26 > 0:09:28In fact, if he'd been in any doubt about the quality
0:09:28 > 0:09:32of the original job, Frank ought to have contacted that builder,
0:09:32 > 0:09:34since the roof was still under warranty.
0:09:34 > 0:09:37Instead, Clay talked him into handing over
0:09:37 > 0:09:42another £5,800 to reinforce the roof beams,
0:09:42 > 0:09:47bringing the total to a scandalous £10,300.
0:09:47 > 0:09:49This rogue roofer was on a roll,
0:09:49 > 0:09:51and he knew exactly which buttons to press,
0:09:51 > 0:09:54starting with the switch on the kettle.
0:09:54 > 0:09:56I think he was taking advantage of my kind nature,
0:09:56 > 0:09:59because another thing I used to do was give him cups of tea,
0:09:59 > 0:10:03and they even came to the house when they were doing work elsewhere,
0:10:03 > 0:10:06saying, "Don't worry, mate, just want a cup of tea!"
0:10:06 > 0:10:08The whole thing beggars belief.
0:10:08 > 0:10:10Well, the cheeky caffeine addict
0:10:10 > 0:10:13was very busy planning the next phase of his cynical assault
0:10:13 > 0:10:15on Frank's good will.
0:10:16 > 0:10:20In late January 2008, he turned up yet again, claiming that
0:10:20 > 0:10:27the entire roof would now need replacing at a cost of £5,500.
0:10:27 > 0:10:30Sadly, Frank agreed.
0:10:30 > 0:10:36I felt that he was trying to be genuinely helpful in suggesting
0:10:36 > 0:10:41these things, and so I was really taken in by what he was saying.
0:10:41 > 0:10:45Clay's charm offensive didn't stop there, though.
0:10:45 > 0:10:48His next act of kindness really gave Frank something to chew on.
0:10:48 > 0:10:56At Christmas, he gave me a tin of Quality Street and a Christmas card.
0:10:57 > 0:10:59The Quality Street wasn't very good.
0:10:59 > 0:11:02It tasted as though it was well out of date.
0:11:03 > 0:11:07Past its sell-by date and past its eat-by date, I think!
0:11:07 > 0:11:11I've come across a number of rogue traders in my time at
0:11:11 > 0:11:15Trading Standards, but have never had a scenario like this before.
0:11:15 > 0:11:20Dean Clay giving Mr Carrier a box of chocolates
0:11:20 > 0:11:23and a Christmas card, it sickens me at the bottom of my heart
0:11:23 > 0:11:28that he's being that friendly to completely rip off Mr Carrier
0:11:28 > 0:11:32and take as much money from him as he possibly could.
0:11:32 > 0:11:36Believe me, there was nothing sweet about Dean Clay, that's for sure.
0:11:36 > 0:11:39His comeuppance came when a builder working across the road
0:11:39 > 0:11:41saw what was happening and called the police,
0:11:41 > 0:11:45who in turn alerted the team at Sandwell Trading Standards.
0:11:45 > 0:11:49We arrived with the police
0:11:49 > 0:11:54and found a number of men working on the property.
0:11:54 > 0:11:59The work was vastly overcharged and looked to be of poor quality.
0:11:59 > 0:12:03When I spoke to Dean Clay, he gave the persona that he'd done
0:12:03 > 0:12:07nothing wrong and was quite shocked that we had attended.
0:12:09 > 0:12:13Well, at least he didn't give Mark a box of stale chocolates!
0:12:13 > 0:12:15Meanwhile, Frank must have been relieved that someone nearby
0:12:15 > 0:12:18had acted in such a community-spirited away
0:12:18 > 0:12:20by alerting the authorities.
0:12:20 > 0:12:26It made me feel, well, absolutely overjoyed and glad about it,
0:12:26 > 0:12:31because it was a real relief to have them taken away.
0:12:31 > 0:12:36When I first realised I'd been conned, I felt a real fool.
0:12:36 > 0:12:40Because you've been taking in, but of course, as I say,
0:12:40 > 0:12:44they seemed so genuine that you are taken in.
0:12:44 > 0:12:49Well, like his dodgy chocolates, Clay's confidence soon melted away
0:12:49 > 0:12:53when he was charged with fraud by false representation and
0:12:53 > 0:12:57sentenced to 52 weeks' imprisonment, suspended for two years.
0:12:57 > 0:13:01He was also ordered to carry out 200 hours of community service.
0:13:01 > 0:13:03Now, it's certainly been a very tough lesson for brave Frank,
0:13:03 > 0:13:07but he's managing to stay positive and he's well prepared
0:13:07 > 0:13:10should any more doorstepping rogues decide to try their luck.
0:13:10 > 0:13:14If anybody comes to the door or if anybody contacts me,
0:13:14 > 0:13:18I stop and think about it and usually I get rid of them.
0:13:18 > 0:13:21I've even got a thing on the door that the police have given me
0:13:21 > 0:13:24to try and frighten them off.
0:13:24 > 0:13:27Still to come, the bungling burglars
0:13:27 > 0:13:30who thought they'd pulled off the perfect crime,
0:13:30 > 0:13:34pocketing £2,300 from a defenceless pensioner.
0:13:34 > 0:13:36But brilliantly, they got their just desserts.
0:13:38 > 0:13:40He probably thought he'd got away with it,
0:13:40 > 0:13:43because at that point he didn't know what evidence we had.
0:13:46 > 0:13:50Well, once again, may I say how much we love receiving your letters
0:13:50 > 0:13:51and your e-mails.
0:13:51 > 0:13:53Marion Pinter of Hertfordshire says,
0:13:53 > 0:13:56"We often get young men selling cleaning materials,
0:13:56 > 0:13:59"saying that they're on probation or starting a new job soon.
0:13:59 > 0:14:02"Now, are these genuine or just checking out
0:14:02 > 0:14:03"the residents at the door?"
0:14:03 > 0:14:06Well, our experts in police and Trading Standards
0:14:06 > 0:14:08advise not to deal with anyone
0:14:08 > 0:14:11selling or offering services at the door.
0:14:11 > 0:14:13It's as simple as that. Don't do it.
0:14:13 > 0:14:15At this point, let's catch-up with Marion Lewis
0:14:15 > 0:14:17and her heroic volunteers in Leicestershire.
0:14:20 > 0:14:22At the community beat stall in Market Harborough,
0:14:22 > 0:14:26there's a really nice steady flow of visitors keen to get advice
0:14:26 > 0:14:29and exchange information on keeping doorstep criminals at bay.
0:14:30 > 0:14:33It's good that everybody's looking after each other. Yeah.
0:14:33 > 0:14:36Because you can't be too careful these days, can you?
0:14:36 > 0:14:39There's some crafty devils about!
0:14:39 > 0:14:41Marion set up this whole enterprise
0:14:41 > 0:14:44and dedicated her life to tackling neighbourhood crime.
0:14:44 > 0:14:47It was the only positive step to take after her father-in-law
0:14:47 > 0:14:50was murdered by doorstep conmen in 2002.
0:14:50 > 0:14:53As Inspector Paul McKinder explains,
0:14:53 > 0:14:57Neighbourhood Watch can have a vital role in apprehending offenders.
0:14:57 > 0:15:01Most of our information and intelligence comes from the public.
0:15:01 > 0:15:06These stalls genuinely have about 100 people turning out in one day.
0:15:06 > 0:15:09If we had a beat surgery, we would never get those sort of numbers,
0:15:09 > 0:15:11so the amount of information we get from the public
0:15:11 > 0:15:13who come down on a Tuesday is significant.
0:15:13 > 0:15:16In the last ten years, the work of Marion
0:15:16 > 0:15:19and her fellow volunteers has made the Market Harborough
0:15:19 > 0:15:21Neighbourhood Watch into a great success.
0:15:21 > 0:15:26What's the difference you've made in your community in terms of crime?
0:15:26 > 0:15:29We've reduced the incidents of distraction burglary massively.
0:15:29 > 0:15:33When we first set up, there were probably on average 36 a year.
0:15:33 > 0:15:35Last year, we had one victim.
0:15:35 > 0:15:39Wow. So what percentage have you lowered crime by?
0:15:39 > 0:15:42I suppose it's 300%, isn't it? More than 300%.
0:15:42 > 0:15:45- That is fantastic, isn't it? - In this particular crime.
0:15:45 > 0:15:46And no repeat victims.
0:15:46 > 0:15:49Now, despite your great success with Neighbourhood Watch,
0:15:49 > 0:15:53obviously, people are always working out new doorstep crimes,
0:15:53 > 0:15:56so what else has cropped up that maybe your community hadn't expected?
0:15:56 > 0:15:59We had a rogue window cleaner.
0:15:59 > 0:16:04There was a young gentleman who was actually watching
0:16:04 > 0:16:07where the window cleaners were going to collect the money
0:16:07 > 0:16:10and if they were doing a house and then weren't collecting
0:16:10 > 0:16:13money that day, he jotted that down and then went back and turned up
0:16:13 > 0:16:16and said, "I've come for your window cleaning money."
0:16:17 > 0:16:20It was one of Marian's plucky volunteers, Necia Wolfe,
0:16:20 > 0:16:24who was able to turn the tables on the rogue window cleaner.
0:16:24 > 0:16:25He came to my door and he said,
0:16:25 > 0:16:29"I've come to collect the window money,"
0:16:29 > 0:16:33and I said to him, "Well, you shouldn't have come this month."
0:16:33 > 0:16:37He said, "Well, I'm sorry, we made a mistake."
0:16:37 > 0:16:44So I said, "OK, I'll pay you, but I've only got a £10 note."
0:16:44 > 0:16:48So he said, "I'll nip round to the van and get some change
0:16:48 > 0:16:50"and bring it back to you."
0:16:50 > 0:16:55Well, I hung on for about 15 minutes and he didn't come back.
0:16:55 > 0:16:58So I thought there was something suspicious,
0:16:58 > 0:16:59so I rang the police.
0:16:59 > 0:17:03And Necia did exactly the right thing.
0:17:03 > 0:17:05Sgt Dave Thorley headed up the investigation.
0:17:05 > 0:17:09The shocking conman had targeted numerous locals in the same way
0:17:09 > 0:17:12before just waltzing off with his ill-gotten gains.
0:17:12 > 0:17:15To help us investigate the case, it was very much down to
0:17:15 > 0:17:18the public and their due diligence that really helped us.
0:17:18 > 0:17:22It was a simple case of hard work, footwork, to people's doors,
0:17:22 > 0:17:26"Have you seen this? What did you see? What time was it?"
0:17:26 > 0:17:28From that, we put out a press release
0:17:28 > 0:17:31and from that press release, we had a very kind lady in the town
0:17:31 > 0:17:35who actually phoned us to say, "The MO put out in the paper
0:17:35 > 0:17:39"with a description is the person who's just knocked on my door."
0:17:39 > 0:17:41Within an hour, the gentleman was arrested.
0:17:41 > 0:17:44He was charged with the offence of fraud
0:17:44 > 0:17:47and he received a four month custodial sentence.
0:17:47 > 0:17:50Thanks to the work of the police and the local Neighbourhood Watch,
0:17:50 > 0:17:54this bogus window cleaner got what he deserved,
0:17:54 > 0:17:56but as Necia explains, Neighbourhood Watch
0:17:56 > 0:17:59isn't just about keeping an eye out for doorstep crime.
0:17:59 > 0:18:03We're all good friends, we all look after each other.
0:18:03 > 0:18:05We have all the e-mail messages,
0:18:05 > 0:18:10even the 96-year-old up the road has e-mail messages,
0:18:10 > 0:18:15so we know what's happening from all the Neighbourhood Watch business
0:18:15 > 0:18:18that's going on in Harborough.
0:18:18 > 0:18:21The local community has played their part in bringing
0:18:21 > 0:18:23another doorstep criminal to justice.
0:18:23 > 0:18:26It's one of many superb results,
0:18:26 > 0:18:29but rather than rest on their laurels, Marion
0:18:29 > 0:18:32and her volunteers are keeping up their fight against doorstep crime.
0:18:32 > 0:18:35Marion's hard work for the community was recognised
0:18:35 > 0:18:38in the 2010 honours list.
0:18:38 > 0:18:41I can't help notice, of course, your OBE badge.
0:18:41 > 0:18:44How did you react when you heard that you had got this OBE?
0:18:44 > 0:18:47I was absolutely delighted.
0:18:47 > 0:18:51I think it made everything we've been through as a family
0:18:51 > 0:18:54and all the hard work that, not only myself,
0:18:54 > 0:18:56but all my volunteer colleagues do,
0:18:56 > 0:18:58it was actually a really big thank you to them as well,
0:18:58 > 0:19:02and, as I say, it was making a positive out of something negative
0:19:02 > 0:19:03that happened to us as a family.
0:19:03 > 0:19:06What's your message to other communities?
0:19:06 > 0:19:09I would encourage people to look at Neighbourhood Watch,
0:19:09 > 0:19:11forget the old curtain-twitching stories
0:19:11 > 0:19:16and actually look at Neighbourhood Watch as a way of actually helping link your community together.
0:19:16 > 0:19:19If you've got nothing else in common, you all want to stay safe.
0:19:19 > 0:19:22- You can wear your OBE proudly. Thank you very much.- Thank you.
0:19:22 > 0:19:26- Thanks, Anne. Nice to see you again. - Thank you, bye-bye.
0:19:26 > 0:19:29I think you'll agree, that was absolutely splendid.
0:19:29 > 0:19:30And thanks again to Marion
0:19:30 > 0:19:33and all her colleagues in Market Harborough for making us feel
0:19:33 > 0:19:37so welcome and giving as an insight into the brilliant work they do.
0:19:37 > 0:19:40It's time now for our final rendezvous,
0:19:40 > 0:19:41and this time it's in Somerset,
0:19:41 > 0:19:45where two brave ladies have been having trouble with burglars.
0:19:45 > 0:19:47Fortunately, the police caught them,
0:19:47 > 0:19:49and you'll find it hard to believe how they did it.
0:19:53 > 0:19:56This is a story of how a pair of doorstepping distraction burglars
0:19:56 > 0:19:59preyed on a vulnerable mother and daughter.
0:19:59 > 0:20:02Thanks to quick-thinking police, not to mention the incompetence
0:20:02 > 0:20:06of the thieves themselves, the brave ladies were able to fight back.
0:20:06 > 0:20:11The victim is a 95-year-old woman who is cared for
0:20:11 > 0:20:13at the home of her daughter on the Somerset coast.
0:20:13 > 0:20:14Both wish to remain private,
0:20:14 > 0:20:16but they are keen to share their story
0:20:16 > 0:20:20in the hope of preventing others suffering a similar fate,
0:20:20 > 0:20:23so we'll call them Edna and daughter Sylvia.
0:20:23 > 0:20:26You tend to find that these type of offences are committed
0:20:26 > 0:20:29against the vulnerable, elderly members of the community.
0:20:29 > 0:20:31Once they are in a property,
0:20:31 > 0:20:36they know that people of that age don't tend to trust banks.
0:20:36 > 0:20:41She goes and she cashes the money from the bank to the very penny,
0:20:41 > 0:20:44brings it home, puts it in a brown envelope in her drawer.
0:20:45 > 0:20:48And I don't seem to be able to cure her of that.
0:20:50 > 0:20:52Unfortunately, in recent years, Sylvia
0:20:52 > 0:20:55and her mum haven't had a great deal of luck.
0:20:55 > 0:20:59In 2009, they were burgled, followed a few months later by an encounter
0:20:59 > 0:21:04with a rogue builder who scammed them out of a massive £4,000.
0:21:05 > 0:21:08Now, just when Sylvia thought things couldn't get any worse,
0:21:08 > 0:21:13in September 2010, two men came knocking on their door.
0:21:13 > 0:21:15They told her they worked for a well-known bank
0:21:15 > 0:21:18and had reason to believe that the cash that was stolen
0:21:18 > 0:21:21during the 2009 burglary was actually counterfeit
0:21:21 > 0:21:24and so needed to check all the remaining cash in the house.
0:21:24 > 0:21:27Now, you may just think that's just a likely tale,
0:21:27 > 0:21:30but Sylvia invited them in.
0:21:30 > 0:21:31There was two of them
0:21:31 > 0:21:36and the big one was busy asking me to look at things on the table.
0:21:36 > 0:21:40I've forgotten what, that definitely,
0:21:40 > 0:21:44I didn't hear or see his colleague go into the bedroom
0:21:44 > 0:21:49until I turned round and I said to him, "Where's your colleague?
0:21:49 > 0:21:51"I didn't hear t'door go."
0:21:51 > 0:21:53The man told Sylvia that his colleague had gone to
0:21:53 > 0:21:56her mother's room to check for counterfeit cash,
0:21:56 > 0:22:00a line so preposterous that even Sylvia smelt a rat.
0:22:00 > 0:22:03I said to him, "What do you think you're doing?"
0:22:03 > 0:22:05He said, "Just checking everything."
0:22:05 > 0:22:07And he walked back out with me, you know,
0:22:07 > 0:22:09and I became suspicious then,
0:22:09 > 0:22:13but there were two of them to one of me.
0:22:13 > 0:22:16If the pair's outrageous behaviour wasn't suspicious enough,
0:22:16 > 0:22:20Sylvia then noticed one of the men quite literally covering his tracks.
0:22:20 > 0:22:26As he was talking, he was kind of wiping the end of the table
0:22:26 > 0:22:29where he'd been stood and then when he said, "We'll be going,"
0:22:29 > 0:22:35he started to wipe the door handle, and I thought, "Ooh, very odd."
0:22:35 > 0:22:40I had me doubts, but I didn't say anything to them.
0:22:40 > 0:22:46As soon as I shut the door, I picked up my phone and dialled 999.
0:22:46 > 0:22:48We have no doubt that Sylvia did exactly the right thing
0:22:48 > 0:22:50under the circumstances,
0:22:50 > 0:22:54and at least the dodgy pair were finally out of her house.
0:22:54 > 0:22:56Sadly, it looked as if the heartless doorsteppers
0:22:56 > 0:22:59had managed to find some of her mum's cash.
0:22:59 > 0:23:04It transpired they'd taken 2,300, which...
0:23:07 > 0:23:10..upset me tremendously, cos it were Mum's,
0:23:10 > 0:23:15and it annoyed me that it was in there instead of somewhere safer.
0:23:15 > 0:23:19£2,300, a shocking amount.
0:23:19 > 0:23:22Thankfully, the police turned up within minutes
0:23:22 > 0:23:24to begin their investigation.
0:23:24 > 0:23:27And it wasn't long before they made an unprecedented discovery.
0:23:27 > 0:23:31It seems the callous thieves had been so preoccupied with wiping away
0:23:31 > 0:23:36their incriminating fingerprints that they forgot one crucial item.
0:23:37 > 0:23:40While we were in the property, it was discovered
0:23:40 > 0:23:43that one of the offenders had actually left a notebook
0:23:43 > 0:23:47on the kitchen table. Normally they're very crafty
0:23:47 > 0:23:50where what they'll do is wipe every surface that they've touched,
0:23:50 > 0:23:52so as soon as we realised that one of them
0:23:52 > 0:23:55had brought this notebook in and left it on the table, we thought,
0:23:55 > 0:23:58"Hang on, there is a good opportunity here,"
0:23:58 > 0:23:59and that was seized by the CSI,
0:23:59 > 0:24:02the crime scene investigators, straightaway.
0:24:02 > 0:24:06Guess what - the forensics team soon discovered that the fingerprints
0:24:06 > 0:24:10matched those of 32-year-old Christopher John Richards
0:24:10 > 0:24:13and the police wasted no time in tracking him down.
0:24:13 > 0:24:16He was arrested and brought to Weston-super-Mare.
0:24:16 > 0:24:20Obviously, not very happy, probably thought he'd got away with it,
0:24:20 > 0:24:23because at that point, he didn't know what evidence we had.
0:24:23 > 0:24:26The game was up for Richards
0:24:26 > 0:24:29when he was shown the notebook covered with his own fingerprints.
0:24:29 > 0:24:33Once that evidence was then put to him,
0:24:33 > 0:24:37he then actually admitted taking the cash from this victim.
0:24:37 > 0:24:40When Richards was formally charged with burglary,
0:24:40 > 0:24:42police made an astonishing discovery.
0:24:42 > 0:24:45His brother David Richards was the rogue builder who had conned
0:24:45 > 0:24:49poor Sylvia and her mum out of £4,000 just months before.
0:24:49 > 0:24:52Now, you might say, there's a coincidence.
0:24:52 > 0:24:56Richards' accomplice has never been caught, but here's the good news.
0:24:56 > 0:25:01In October 2010, Christopher Richards appeared at Bristol Crown Court
0:25:01 > 0:25:03where he was sentenced to ten months' imprisonment
0:25:03 > 0:25:09and ordered to repay Sylvia the £2,300 that he had stolen.
0:25:09 > 0:25:13Oh, I was happy and delighted with the verdict that he was going
0:25:13 > 0:25:18to get some punishment, however small, that he was sent to prison.
0:25:18 > 0:25:21He wouldn't get Christmas at all.
0:25:21 > 0:25:23So I was delighted.
0:25:23 > 0:25:27Hello, my love. How are you? All right?
0:25:27 > 0:25:31Sylvia and Edna are given regular check up visits by the police
0:25:31 > 0:25:34and investigating officer Keith Harris is with them today,
0:25:34 > 0:25:37but for Sylvia, the whole experience still rankles.
0:25:37 > 0:25:39The money didn't matter.
0:25:39 > 0:25:44It was the fact of betraying your peace of mind.
0:25:44 > 0:25:46Money you can replace.
0:25:47 > 0:25:50You can't replace your peace of mind.
0:25:50 > 0:25:54I'll catch you again soon, all right? See you later.
0:25:54 > 0:25:56Bye. Bye. See you again. Bye.
0:25:56 > 0:25:59The message we are sending out to the people that commit these types
0:25:59 > 0:26:04of offences is that we will continue to track you down
0:26:04 > 0:26:08and we are always looking over old crimes.
0:26:08 > 0:26:10If you are committing these types of offences,
0:26:10 > 0:26:12we will bring you before the courts.
0:26:14 > 0:26:18Fantastic work being done there by Somerset police,
0:26:18 > 0:26:21and huge thanks to Sylvia and her mum for sharing that.
0:26:21 > 0:26:25Before we go, I'd like to thank Eric Tindall of Melton Mowbray for his note.
0:26:25 > 0:26:29He says that the town is heading towards having every street
0:26:29 > 0:26:32recruited into the local Neighbourhood Watch
0:26:32 > 0:26:35and he wonders if they could soon have the largest membership
0:26:35 > 0:26:37for such a scheme in this country.
0:26:37 > 0:26:39Well, fingers crossed for you, Eric, but I wonder
0:26:39 > 0:26:42if you've got any competitors. You at home know best.
0:26:42 > 0:26:45We're here to fight back against doorstep criminals
0:26:45 > 0:26:49and we'd love to hear more about how you have caught them out.
0:26:49 > 0:26:54bbc.co.uk is the website where you'll find all our details,
0:26:54 > 0:26:56so may I just say thank you very much for watching
0:26:56 > 0:26:59and I obviously hope you'll join us again next time. Bye-bye.
0:27:20 > 0:27:24Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd