0:00:02 > 0:00:04Thieves will steal our cars, our valuables,
0:00:04 > 0:00:08just about anything they can get their hands on.
0:00:09 > 0:00:12To cut down on crime and antisocial behaviour,
0:00:12 > 0:00:15the police are using new tactics and technology
0:00:15 > 0:00:18where the bad guys are getting caught in the act.
0:00:18 > 0:00:22I can see the man actually commit the robbery. Lovely, thank you very much.
0:00:22 > 0:00:26Local councils, shops and businesses are laying some traps of their own.
0:00:26 > 0:00:29Why should we feel frightened for the rest of our lives?
0:00:29 > 0:00:30And the general public too
0:00:30 > 0:00:33can help unsuspecting crooks get their comeuppance.
0:00:33 > 0:00:35No way are you getting away.
0:00:35 > 0:00:38We did it for everyone else as well that she might be stealing from.
0:00:38 > 0:00:39We will name and shame you.
0:00:39 > 0:00:42- So, anyone who's up to no good... - POLICE!
0:00:42 > 0:00:43..had better think twice.
0:00:43 > 0:00:46They might just get caught red-handed.
0:00:52 > 0:00:53Today...
0:00:53 > 0:00:55Fire and rescue, where's the emergency?
0:00:55 > 0:00:59Firefighters join forces with council CCTV camera operators
0:00:59 > 0:01:03to set an ingenious trap to catch a phantom phone caller.
0:01:10 > 0:01:14Also today, they call it Operation Narnia.
0:01:14 > 0:01:17The lion, the snitch and the wardrobe.
0:01:17 > 0:01:19A family turn to a technological teddy bear
0:01:19 > 0:01:23to catch a callous carer stealing money from their grandmother.
0:01:23 > 0:01:25She was in a position of trust, you know.
0:01:25 > 0:01:27We wanted her on the property to help Mum
0:01:27 > 0:01:30and we assumed that's what she was doing.
0:01:30 > 0:01:32And...it's "bin" framed.
0:01:32 > 0:01:35The intriguing case of the bottomless bin
0:01:35 > 0:01:36that keeps on filling.
0:01:42 > 0:01:47We're going to hear an actual 999 call to the fire service.
0:01:47 > 0:01:49But it's from someone who doesn't need their help.
0:01:49 > 0:01:52- OPERATOR:- 'Fire and rescue, where's the emergency?'
0:01:55 > 0:01:57'Yeah, what's the problem there?'
0:02:01 > 0:02:03'What, as in a lorry or...?'
0:02:08 > 0:02:11It sounds serious but this call is, in fact, a hoax.
0:02:13 > 0:02:14'Right.'
0:02:22 > 0:02:25When the fire trucks and an ambulance arrive at the bus depot,
0:02:25 > 0:02:29they find no driver, no tanker and no fire at all.
0:02:30 > 0:02:34And this is not the first time this hoax caller has struck.
0:02:35 > 0:02:37Hoax calls cost lives. They tie up our pumps
0:02:37 > 0:02:40attending incidents where we're not genuinely required,
0:02:40 > 0:02:42which means we don't have the resources
0:02:42 > 0:02:45to deal with incidents where we are required. Also, it's dangerous
0:02:45 > 0:02:48because our fire engines drive at high speeds sometimes through
0:02:48 > 0:02:51built-up areas putting our crews and the public in danger.
0:02:51 > 0:02:54All hoax calls are costly and dangerous,
0:02:54 > 0:02:57but this caller is a persistent pest.
0:02:57 > 0:02:59So much so that the fire service has called in
0:02:59 > 0:03:02the council's CCTV surveillance team.
0:03:02 > 0:03:05They've asked them to divert their cameras to catch a man
0:03:05 > 0:03:07who's been a problem for the emergency services
0:03:07 > 0:03:09for several years.
0:03:15 > 0:03:17Fire and rescue, where's the emergency?
0:03:17 > 0:03:20Fire station commander Paul Macdonald is the first
0:03:20 > 0:03:23to get an inkling that something's wrong.
0:03:23 > 0:03:25It was around last summer.
0:03:25 > 0:03:28I was going through the incident log
0:03:28 > 0:03:31and I noticed two very specific false alarms.
0:03:31 > 0:03:34One of the calls was a lorry with cylinders on fire
0:03:34 > 0:03:37and the other one was a lorry had crashed into a bus stop.
0:03:37 > 0:03:41Both contained so much detail, which I thought was unusual.
0:03:41 > 0:03:44So that's why I flagged it up.
0:03:44 > 0:03:45Paul tells the officer in charge
0:03:45 > 0:03:47at the Services' Command and Control Centre,
0:03:47 > 0:03:50which receives the area's emergency fire calls,
0:03:50 > 0:03:53that this is something worth keeping any eye on.
0:03:54 > 0:03:57A few months on, a familiar voice rings up
0:03:57 > 0:03:59with another apparently serious call.
0:04:12 > 0:04:14EMERGENCY SERVICES OPERATOR: Right, OK.
0:04:18 > 0:04:22Once again, when three emergency services rush to the scene,
0:04:22 > 0:04:26this turns out to be completely false information.
0:04:26 > 0:04:29It was repeating the same pattern, very specific,
0:04:29 > 0:04:32and we realised that we had the beginnings of a problem.
0:04:34 > 0:04:38A search through fire control's database and recorded calls
0:04:38 > 0:04:42helped them check every false alarm over the last five years.
0:04:42 > 0:04:46And they find the problem is larger than they ever could have imagined.
0:04:46 > 0:04:49He called us 28 times over a period of four years.
0:04:51 > 0:04:54I've never known anyone as prolific as that before.
0:04:54 > 0:04:58He never called from the same phone box twice in a row.
0:04:58 > 0:05:01He would move towns and move phone boxes.
0:05:01 > 0:05:05But there is one particular payphone he has used more than others -
0:05:05 > 0:05:08the one at Linton Parade.
0:05:08 > 0:05:12This is the phone box that he used 11 times over four years.
0:05:12 > 0:05:15We knew there was a good chance of getting him,
0:05:15 > 0:05:20because there is a CCTV camera over there covering this area.
0:05:21 > 0:05:24And, soon after, another aggravating hoax call comes in,
0:05:24 > 0:05:28sending fire crews from Paul's station to the A10 road.
0:05:33 > 0:05:36To make matters worse, answering this call prevents them
0:05:36 > 0:05:38attending a serious crash on the M25.
0:05:40 > 0:05:42Seeing the offending call comes
0:05:42 > 0:05:44once again from the Linton Parade phone box,
0:05:44 > 0:05:47Paul contacts the council's CCTV control room
0:05:47 > 0:05:50to see if their camera has picked anything up.
0:05:54 > 0:05:56Shortly after 2:10am,
0:05:56 > 0:05:59and just before the hoax call is about to be made,
0:05:59 > 0:06:01a car pulls up at the Linton Parade.
0:06:03 > 0:06:07We couldn't identify the car -
0:06:07 > 0:06:10the shape of if is very generic.
0:06:10 > 0:06:14Although there was a lot of opinions of everyone who saw this,
0:06:14 > 0:06:17we couldn't conclusively say which car it is.
0:06:19 > 0:06:22A man gets out of the car, he goes toward the phone box
0:06:22 > 0:06:26but stops when he sees another man in a hoodie approaching.
0:06:26 > 0:06:28The man then nonchalantly waits.
0:06:28 > 0:06:31When the guy has gone past the corner,
0:06:31 > 0:06:35this is when he walks to the kiosk, just out of shot on the right,
0:06:35 > 0:06:37and makes the call.
0:06:37 > 0:06:41A couple of minutes later, after finishing his false emergency call,
0:06:41 > 0:06:44the man gets back in his car and drives off at speed.
0:06:45 > 0:06:48It was interesting to see him get out of the car,
0:06:48 > 0:06:52it wasn't somebody just randomly coming out of a pub,
0:06:52 > 0:06:55but it was somebody who had driven deliberately to that phone box.
0:06:55 > 0:06:58These pictures are handed over to the police,
0:06:58 > 0:07:02but for PC Sarah Ashworth, the footage is frustrating.
0:07:02 > 0:07:05Unfortunately, the CCTV wasn't of a good enough quality for us
0:07:05 > 0:07:07to be able to make him out
0:07:07 > 0:07:09or even the make and model of the car,
0:07:09 > 0:07:11never mind the index plate on it.
0:07:11 > 0:07:14Paul knows that the only way they are going to stop the man
0:07:14 > 0:07:18is to catch him at the exact time he's making the bogus call
0:07:18 > 0:07:21so that better pictures can be shot.
0:07:21 > 0:07:23He needs the help of the camera operators
0:07:23 > 0:07:27working around the clock in the council's CCTV control room.
0:07:27 > 0:07:30They wanted us to keep a close eye on a telephone kiosk
0:07:30 > 0:07:34and, if anybody acted suspicious, for us to call the police.
0:07:34 > 0:07:35It was a bit of a manhunt,
0:07:35 > 0:07:38and all my team were desperate to catch this guy,
0:07:38 > 0:07:41due to the fact he was causing so much disruption to the Fire Service.
0:07:41 > 0:07:43But as vigilant as they are,
0:07:43 > 0:07:47the operators can't just focus on one phone box
0:07:47 > 0:07:4824 hours a day for weeks.
0:07:48 > 0:07:50They will need to be tipped off
0:07:50 > 0:07:53when the serial hoaxer is thought to be there.
0:07:53 > 0:07:57As we'll see shortly, Paul has more work to do before the trap is set.
0:08:02 > 0:08:04It's not just the police
0:08:04 > 0:08:06and officials who are using cameras to catch wrongdoers -
0:08:06 > 0:08:09surveillance technology is becoming more user-friendly
0:08:09 > 0:08:11and cheaper every year,
0:08:11 > 0:08:14which means more people like us are turning into amateur sleuths.
0:08:23 > 0:08:26This carer has recently arrived for her usual shift
0:08:26 > 0:08:27to look after an elderly lady.
0:08:27 > 0:08:30She starts doing her duties while chatting with a woman
0:08:30 > 0:08:33and her husband in the next room.
0:08:33 > 0:08:35Everything appears to be normal,
0:08:35 > 0:08:37but this carer is about to betray their trust.
0:08:40 > 0:08:44She opens the wardrobe, but she's not putting anything away.
0:08:44 > 0:08:46She's getting something out for herself.
0:08:46 > 0:08:47Money.
0:08:48 > 0:08:52We were really angry, as you can imagine, really angry.
0:08:52 > 0:08:55I mean, I'm a police officer, we see this sort of thing day-in-day-out,
0:08:55 > 0:08:56it's what we deal with quite a lot.
0:08:56 > 0:08:58But when it happens to a member of your own family,
0:08:58 > 0:09:00it's just sickening. It's not a nice feeling.
0:09:04 > 0:09:08These pictures were recorded at the home of 81-year-old Margaret.
0:09:08 > 0:09:11Her family feel she and her husband are too frail
0:09:11 > 0:09:13to be filmed by our cameras.
0:09:13 > 0:09:16But they want the story of what happened to her to be told.
0:09:19 > 0:09:21Margaret needs regular help,
0:09:21 > 0:09:24which is provided by several carers and her relatives,
0:09:24 > 0:09:29including her daughter, Lindsey, and her grandchildren, Kirstie and Scott.
0:09:29 > 0:09:32Mum has got liver and kidney disease.
0:09:33 > 0:09:38She is unable to move around as much as she could, around the property,
0:09:38 > 0:09:41and she just needs somebody to help with her personal care, really.
0:09:41 > 0:09:44Mentally, she is as bright as a button.
0:09:44 > 0:09:47But her physical health is really quite bad.
0:09:47 > 0:09:49As a family, we try and pull together, and we all try
0:09:49 > 0:09:50and do what needs to be done.
0:09:50 > 0:09:55It's just manifested in needing carers three times a day.
0:09:56 > 0:10:00But over time, it becomes clear there is something wrong.
0:10:00 > 0:10:04Mum was saying that the pension wasn't lasting as long as it should,
0:10:04 > 0:10:08and she thought it was the cost of living that was rising.
0:10:08 > 0:10:11But we were unsure because we get the shopping,
0:10:11 > 0:10:12we give her the receipts.
0:10:12 > 0:10:16Then I caught the tail end of a conversation that my parents
0:10:16 > 0:10:21were having about how much money was in Mum's purse.
0:10:21 > 0:10:23Bearing in mind that Dad had only fetched the pension
0:10:23 > 0:10:26the day before, and this is Tuesday evening,
0:10:26 > 0:10:30obviously something was wrong because we fetched no shopping that day.
0:10:31 > 0:10:35Lindsey checks the carers' rota to see who was on duty for that day.
0:10:37 > 0:10:40This leads them to believe it could only be one person.
0:10:40 > 0:10:43Although she was one of the younger carers, there was
0:10:43 > 0:10:49no real reason to mistrust her, she was in a position of trust, we wanted
0:10:49 > 0:10:53her on the property to help Mum and we assumed that's what she was doing.
0:10:55 > 0:10:56Yeah, it came as quite a shock.
0:10:56 > 0:10:59Unsure what to do, Lindsey could at least call
0:10:59 > 0:11:02on some expertise within the family.
0:11:02 > 0:11:05Fortunately for us, my niece is a police officer.
0:11:05 > 0:11:07She turned up on the doorstep in tears,
0:11:07 > 0:11:11and out tumbled this story about the carers stealing from Grandma.
0:11:11 > 0:11:17I was so angry, beyond belief. And Kirstie was as well.
0:11:17 > 0:11:20And upset that somebody could do it to Mum.
0:11:20 > 0:11:23A family conference is held where Kirstie outlines a plan.
0:11:23 > 0:11:28We needed evidence to support what my auntie suspected.
0:11:28 > 0:11:31I know that in cases in the past,
0:11:31 > 0:11:33the carer would have been arrested, she would have been spoken to,
0:11:33 > 0:11:36interviewed on tape as with all cases.
0:11:36 > 0:11:38Unfortunately, without the evidence to support that, it was
0:11:38 > 0:11:40unlikely to go very far.
0:11:40 > 0:11:42Kirstie advised us to do three things.
0:11:43 > 0:11:47One of them was to write down all the serial numbers of the notes
0:11:47 > 0:11:52that were in Mum's purse. Then she advised that we get some smart water.
0:11:52 > 0:11:55It's basically microscopic bar codes that are forensically linked
0:11:55 > 0:11:57back to the person who has bought the dye.
0:11:57 > 0:12:00When a property is stolen, it can then be traced back
0:12:00 > 0:12:02to its original owner by the use of ultraviolet light.
0:12:02 > 0:12:06But the best evidence would be to catch the carer in the act.
0:12:06 > 0:12:09The third thing was to set the camera up.
0:12:09 > 0:12:11But first, Lindsey's mum needs convincing.
0:12:11 > 0:12:13She likes to see the good in everybody
0:12:13 > 0:12:16and she didn't want to think that anybody would be doing it.
0:12:16 > 0:12:19I said to her, if we do the camera, at least then we will know.
0:12:19 > 0:12:22And we did it for everyone else as well, that she may be stealing from.
0:12:22 > 0:12:27Lindsey buys a camera, small enough for a cameraman called Teddy.
0:12:27 > 0:12:29Mum keeps her money overnight in a wardrobe.
0:12:29 > 0:12:32The little teddy just happened to be sitting on the corner
0:12:32 > 0:12:34of the shelf towards the wardrobe.
0:12:34 > 0:12:37So, the camera is set up, the banknotes are marked
0:12:37 > 0:12:40and the numbers noted.
0:12:40 > 0:12:43We called the whole thing Operation Narnia, just to lighten it
0:12:43 > 0:12:47a little bit, because Mum was getting a little bit anxious about things.
0:12:47 > 0:12:50With the camera switched on, Operation Narnia is up
0:12:50 > 0:12:54and running when the suspected carer arrives for her next shift.
0:12:54 > 0:12:57It is a difficult few hours for Scott's grandparents.
0:12:57 > 0:13:00We had to have it going on in a room away from them
0:13:00 > 0:13:03whilst they knew it was actually happening.
0:13:03 > 0:13:05To actually be aware of that,
0:13:05 > 0:13:07and to know someone is in your house doing that and to not say
0:13:07 > 0:13:10anything, it is not the sort of thing you need at that age.
0:13:10 > 0:13:13When the carer leaves after finishing her shift,
0:13:13 > 0:13:18- Lindsey and her sister go in to find...- Two £20 notes missing.
0:13:18 > 0:13:19Time to check the Teddy Cam.
0:13:19 > 0:13:23Mum insisted on coming in to watch it as well, and Dad.
0:13:23 > 0:13:25So the four of us were sitting in the bedroom.
0:13:25 > 0:13:28We played the tape back, and it didn't make for very nice viewing.
0:13:31 > 0:13:33After a period of time working
0:13:33 > 0:13:36and exchanging pleasantries with Margaret and her husband,
0:13:36 > 0:13:40the camera shows that the carer heads to the bedroom and opens the wardrobe.
0:13:41 > 0:13:43We will soon see what she is after.
0:13:45 > 0:13:48She plucks a purse out of Margaret's handbag,
0:13:48 > 0:13:50opens it and goes through it.
0:13:57 > 0:14:00Finally, she puts it back where she found it and leaves.
0:14:00 > 0:14:04But not before she turns to face the camera as she calmly pockets
0:14:04 > 0:14:06the £20 notes she has pinched.
0:14:09 > 0:14:12The family would have found it incredibly difficult to prove
0:14:12 > 0:14:15the crime took place without the evidence from the camera.
0:14:15 > 0:14:17The fact that she only opens the right-hand door.
0:14:17 > 0:14:21- She knew where it was, didn't she? - She knows exactly what she is doing.
0:14:21 > 0:14:23It was quite a bizarre set of emotions.
0:14:23 > 0:14:27We were really, really happy that she had been caught, but also,
0:14:27 > 0:14:30to know that we were right, and it had been going on
0:14:30 > 0:14:33to an extent under all of our noses was also quite a bad feeling.
0:14:33 > 0:14:35It still makes your tummy roll, doesn't it?
0:14:35 > 0:14:38I'm a police officer and I deal with things like this day in
0:14:38 > 0:14:42and day out, it is something we deal with quite often.
0:14:42 > 0:14:45I always try to be empathetic, sympathetic.
0:14:45 > 0:14:48But when it happens to members of your own family, it throws
0:14:48 > 0:14:51all of that out of the water completely, it is quite different.
0:14:51 > 0:14:54She's not frightened or anything. My heart would have been...
0:14:56 > 0:14:59But this carer's heart rate is about to go up.
0:14:59 > 0:15:00I rang the police.
0:15:00 > 0:15:03They came and watched the footage, and I think within
0:15:03 > 0:15:05two and a half hours, they had arrested her.
0:15:09 > 0:15:13At court, the carer admits to stealing £40 from Margaret.
0:15:15 > 0:15:18The fact that she is on bail for a previous theft
0:15:18 > 0:15:19is taken into account.
0:15:21 > 0:15:24And she is jailed for 13 months.
0:15:30 > 0:15:32I am pleased that she was convicted.
0:15:32 > 0:15:37I think it needs to be made quite a strong point of that obviously
0:15:37 > 0:15:41this shouldn't be happening. They are vulnerable members of society.
0:15:42 > 0:15:47I hope that she learns something from it and reforms,
0:15:47 > 0:15:51but I feel like our family have spent too much time talking about her.
0:15:52 > 0:15:55We just need to get closure now.
0:15:55 > 0:15:56Put it behind us,
0:15:56 > 0:15:59then we can move on and talk to Mum about nice things.
0:16:07 > 0:16:09Coming up on Caught Red Handed...
0:16:09 > 0:16:14- A load of old rubbish and a whole load more.- We couldn't believe it.
0:16:14 > 0:16:16We looked at it and we were shocked.
0:16:16 > 0:16:18The rubbish bin that keeps on giving.
0:16:27 > 0:16:29Fire and Rescue, where's the emergency?
0:16:32 > 0:16:35Earlier, we heard the voice of a persistent hoaxer
0:16:35 > 0:16:38who has kept calling out the Hertfordshire Fire Service.
0:16:38 > 0:16:42Station Commander Paul Macdonald is determined to stop him.
0:16:42 > 0:16:46A phone box man regularly uses is in range of the council's
0:16:46 > 0:16:48hi tech CCTV control centre.
0:16:49 > 0:16:52They normally keep a general eye on the town,
0:16:52 > 0:16:55but now they are crucial to help Paul catch the offender.
0:16:55 > 0:16:58But the camera operators would need to be tipped off
0:16:58 > 0:17:00when he is on the phone.
0:17:00 > 0:17:04Paul needs to help 999 call takers to recognise the hoaxer's voice
0:17:04 > 0:17:06and speech patterns -
0:17:06 > 0:17:10no easy task when they receive around 1,900 calls a month.
0:17:10 > 0:17:12Fire and Rescue, where's the emergency?
0:17:12 > 0:17:15He would repeat phrases at the start, saying things like,
0:17:15 > 0:17:17"Well, what it is..."
0:17:17 > 0:17:20And then he would elaborate a story.
0:17:20 > 0:17:22'What it is...'
0:17:22 > 0:17:24'What it is...'
0:17:24 > 0:17:27'What it is...'
0:17:27 > 0:17:30Then he was giving us further details as well, just to embellish
0:17:30 > 0:17:32the story, to make it sound quite realistic.
0:17:32 > 0:17:35'Near a block of flats, it's not affecting it at all, no?'
0:17:35 > 0:17:39'Not at the moment, but it is right near some railway lines as well.'
0:17:39 > 0:17:43And then, right at the end of the call, he would add an extra element to it.
0:17:43 > 0:17:46He would say things like, "I don't know
0:17:46 > 0:17:48"if there are explosives in there."
0:17:48 > 0:17:52'I don't know if, like, there are any gas cylinders or anything in it.'
0:17:52 > 0:17:56Things like that that would actually get a bigger attendance
0:17:56 > 0:17:58and entail all three emergency services.
0:18:00 > 0:18:01But some months later,
0:18:01 > 0:18:06all this research into the mystery man's methods is about to pay off.
0:18:06 > 0:18:10Late one Friday night, Stephen Munn is on duty when he gets a call.
0:18:10 > 0:18:13Fire and Rescue, where's the emergency?
0:18:27 > 0:18:29He started the conversation with, "Well, what it is is..."
0:18:29 > 0:18:32And then proceeded to give us details of an incident there.
0:18:32 > 0:18:35Due to the location and the way that he was speaking to me,
0:18:35 > 0:18:37I recognised him quite early on in the call.
0:18:37 > 0:18:40I signalled to one of my colleagues, and she called the police,
0:18:40 > 0:18:43who also contacted the CCTV control room.
0:18:44 > 0:18:46In just under two minutes,
0:18:46 > 0:18:49the camera operator at the CCTV control room spins
0:18:49 > 0:18:51the camera at Linton Parade around
0:18:51 > 0:18:55and zooms in on the man that is currently on the phone to Stephen.
0:19:08 > 0:19:09It was important to keep him
0:19:09 > 0:19:11on the line as long as possible. So I started
0:19:11 > 0:19:13asking him more questions about the incident.
0:19:15 > 0:19:17The irony is
0:19:17 > 0:19:21that Stephen still has to despatch fire crews to the location
0:19:21 > 0:19:23the caller was describing,
0:19:23 > 0:19:27just in case there is a slim chance he's telling the truth.
0:19:27 > 0:19:29Their sirens can be heard in the background.
0:19:29 > 0:19:32The man suddenly seems keen to get off the phone.
0:19:44 > 0:19:47The man is going to leave before the police can get there.
0:19:47 > 0:19:51But he doesn't realise that his every move is being filmed.
0:19:51 > 0:19:54We've got such fantastic cameras, I think
0:19:54 > 0:19:56the man in question thought he'd got away with it,
0:19:56 > 0:19:59but my operator zoomed in on the number plate
0:19:59 > 0:20:02and passed all the information over to the police.
0:20:02 > 0:20:04Number plate noted, now police officer Sarah
0:20:04 > 0:20:06has all the information she needs
0:20:06 > 0:20:08to get her man.
0:20:08 > 0:20:10The vehicle was registered to a company,
0:20:10 > 0:20:12but that didn't give us a name.
0:20:12 > 0:20:14We found that that vehicle had gone through
0:20:14 > 0:20:16a speed camera some months ago.
0:20:16 > 0:20:18We were able to find a photo off them
0:20:18 > 0:20:21and compared their photo to the CCTV we had.
0:20:21 > 0:20:23And then we knew who we were looking for.
0:20:23 > 0:20:25The man is arrested at his home address.
0:20:25 > 0:20:29He did seem quite shocked and surprised that we were there.
0:20:29 > 0:20:31And then he was interviewed later on,
0:20:31 > 0:20:34and again admitted he was the person making the calls,
0:20:34 > 0:20:37and did appear to show some remorse for his actions.
0:20:41 > 0:20:44Pleading guilty at court and showing remorse, the man is fined
0:20:44 > 0:20:48and receives a Community Order banning him from making hoax calls.
0:20:48 > 0:20:52If breached, he'll far more serious consequences.
0:20:55 > 0:20:58This CCTV camera, in the right pace at the right time,
0:20:58 > 0:21:02has helped bring to an end a four year nuisance.
0:21:02 > 0:21:06There was definitely a sense of satisfaction when he was caught,
0:21:06 > 0:21:09because without catching him he would have just carried on
0:21:09 > 0:21:12until we had, maybe for another four years.
0:21:12 > 0:21:13He'd been giving us the run-around,
0:21:13 > 0:21:16so it was a real relief to have finally caught him.
0:21:22 > 0:21:25Some people are wary of CCTV,
0:21:25 > 0:21:27saying it's like Big Brother.
0:21:27 > 0:21:30But in this case, it's not a matter of Big Brother watching us,
0:21:30 > 0:21:32but watching THEM.
0:21:32 > 0:21:34Offenders like the hoaxer.
0:21:34 > 0:21:36CCTV is there to keep you safe.
0:21:36 > 0:21:38If you're a law-abiding member of the public,
0:21:38 > 0:21:4099.9% of the time,
0:21:40 > 0:21:42the CCTV won't even notice that you're there.
0:21:42 > 0:21:45But if, unfortunately, you do become a victim of crime,
0:21:45 > 0:21:48it can help us catch criminals and put them behind bars.
0:21:48 > 0:21:52I make a plea to those people who do misuse the 999 system.
0:21:52 > 0:21:54If it was your member of the family
0:21:54 > 0:21:56who urgently needed our assistance,
0:21:56 > 0:21:59where would you want us to be?
0:21:59 > 0:22:01It's not clear what twisted motives
0:22:01 > 0:22:04led the Hertfordshire hoaxer to wantonly waste
0:22:04 > 0:22:07the vital work of the emergency services.
0:22:07 > 0:22:10But at least, thanks to cameras and skilled detective work,
0:22:10 > 0:22:14one persistent offender has hung up the phone for good.
0:22:18 > 0:22:19On Caught Red Handed,
0:22:19 > 0:22:23we see a lot of people taking things that don't belong to them.
0:22:23 > 0:22:25This next problem isn't about what they're taking -
0:22:25 > 0:22:28it's about what they're leaving behind.
0:22:35 > 0:22:37Summer time in Cambridge.
0:22:38 > 0:22:41This grocery store is run by Ifitikhar and his family.
0:22:43 > 0:22:45I'm here about nine and a half years,
0:22:45 > 0:22:49and the past few years business is not good, you know?
0:22:51 > 0:22:54So I am diversifying, going in to hot food takeaway.
0:22:56 > 0:22:58Ifitikhar's shop and takeaway
0:22:58 > 0:23:00generates a lot of rubbish and packaging
0:23:00 > 0:23:04which would soon build up if it wasn't regularly disposed of.
0:23:04 > 0:23:08As you can see, we've got bin here, it's the start of the day,
0:23:08 > 0:23:11and later on, as it goes along, we are filling it up
0:23:11 > 0:23:14and we try to squeeze as well,
0:23:14 > 0:23:18as much as we can, and keep it under control.
0:23:18 > 0:23:22Ifitikhar's shares his large wheelie bin with a Chinese Restaurant,
0:23:22 > 0:23:26which also has its own separate bin.
0:23:26 > 0:23:28Neither business likes its left-overs
0:23:28 > 0:23:30to be left around for too long.
0:23:30 > 0:23:34Because food... So you can imagine what happens.
0:23:34 > 0:23:35Rats, bugs...and anything.
0:23:37 > 0:23:39Flies...
0:23:39 > 0:23:42Which is why they pay for a commercial waste removal
0:23:42 > 0:23:45service run by Cambridge Council.
0:23:45 > 0:23:49Every time they empty the bin, then we have to pay £13 plus VAT.
0:23:52 > 0:23:56One morning, Ifitikhar gets to work to find his bins not only still full
0:23:56 > 0:24:00but more overloaded than he's ever seen it before.
0:24:02 > 0:24:05I look at the bin... Bloody hell, it's so full.
0:24:05 > 0:24:07I mean, we don't leave it like that.
0:24:07 > 0:24:10And the usual harmonious bin-sharing relationship
0:24:10 > 0:24:14with his neighbour from the Chinese restaurant was put to the test.
0:24:14 > 0:24:19Mr Wong came to me, half 11, he thought my staff did that.
0:24:19 > 0:24:23And I thought, when I saw it in the morning, they did like that.
0:24:23 > 0:24:27And then we thought, let's see what's happening, let's check CCTV,
0:24:27 > 0:24:30and when we rewound it, guess what we found?
0:24:30 > 0:24:34Ifitikhar set his camera system up originally as a security measure
0:24:34 > 0:24:37to help prevent shoplifting and vandalism.
0:24:37 > 0:24:41This time, it caught an entirely different sort of misbehaving.
0:24:42 > 0:24:46At almost 7am, a refuse collector turns up,
0:24:46 > 0:24:48seemingly to take the rubbish away.
0:24:50 > 0:24:54But instead, he starts to rummage about in it.
0:24:54 > 0:24:56Plumping it up nicely.
0:24:56 > 0:24:57A colleague joins him.
0:25:00 > 0:25:04Then, for some reason, he gets out a camera to take photos.
0:25:05 > 0:25:08It's true - Ifitikhar's bin was certainly full,
0:25:08 > 0:25:10but now it's really overloaded.
0:25:11 > 0:25:13And after a quick discussion,
0:25:13 > 0:25:17the second man starts to stack the large bin up even more.
0:25:17 > 0:25:20Perhaps they're kindly going to take away as much as they can manage?
0:25:22 > 0:25:25He even puts a bag on it, the cherry on the top.
0:25:27 > 0:25:30But no, the only thing they take is another photo.
0:25:32 > 0:25:34Job done, they walk off.
0:25:35 > 0:25:38It's not what Ifitikhar and his neighbour, Mr Wong,
0:25:38 > 0:25:40were excepting to see.
0:25:40 > 0:25:43We couldn't believe it, we looked at each other, we were shocked.
0:25:43 > 0:25:46Ifitikhar couldn't understand it. And, even more annoying,
0:25:46 > 0:25:49they will still be charged for the disposal of the rubbish.
0:25:49 > 0:25:52They could have emptied it in so much time, they could have emptied it
0:25:52 > 0:25:55in the amount of time they wasted here, you see?
0:25:55 > 0:25:58Ifitikhar got straight on the phone to the council.
0:25:58 > 0:26:00And I was told, "Yes, sir, you know,
0:26:00 > 0:26:04"we have photographic evidence that it wasn't empty because it was full,"
0:26:04 > 0:26:08and then I told them, "I got CCTV evidence what your boys did here."
0:26:08 > 0:26:12The council say they will look into the matter. While he's waiting,
0:26:12 > 0:26:17Ifitikhar does a bit of looking into it himself, at past CCTV recordings.
0:26:18 > 0:26:21And unzips lots of goings on.
0:26:23 > 0:26:27I see the binman coming, he is opening his zip,
0:26:27 > 0:26:30and then he goes behind the bin and do wee there.
0:26:30 > 0:26:32The man has bin and gone all over
0:26:32 > 0:26:35the concrete at the back of the shops.
0:26:35 > 0:26:38And it's no the only occasion.
0:26:38 > 0:26:40Another day, another gentleman doing the same thing.
0:26:40 > 0:26:45The people who should leave it clean are leaving things behind.
0:26:45 > 0:26:47Maybe they need a loo behind the lorries?
0:26:47 > 0:26:49HE LAUGHS
0:26:50 > 0:26:53Om another previous day, the CCTV camera also witnessed
0:26:53 > 0:26:57the refuse collectors overloading the bin again.
0:26:57 > 0:26:59Only, this time, they were happy to take it,
0:26:59 > 0:27:03to save themselves the trouble of emptying both bins.
0:27:03 > 0:27:07If they can do that, why couldn't he take it that time?
0:27:10 > 0:27:13Not hearing anything from the council for a few days,
0:27:13 > 0:27:17Ifitikhar writes a letter and hands over the video of the bin incident.
0:27:18 > 0:27:21He also send it to the local newspaper.
0:27:21 > 0:27:23The council quickly responds.
0:27:24 > 0:27:27After that the did best, they apologised to me,
0:27:27 > 0:27:29and they told me they will do a proper enquiry,
0:27:29 > 0:27:32and whatever the outcome, they will let us know.
0:27:33 > 0:27:35And I'm happy about it.
0:27:35 > 0:27:38Council response? I'm satisfied, I'm happy.
0:27:39 > 0:27:42With the matter of the waste matter now closed,
0:27:42 > 0:27:46Ifitikhar can now concentrate on expanding his own takeaway service.
0:27:47 > 0:27:51Mind you, looking at that lovely grub, I doubt
0:27:51 > 0:27:53- if his customers will complain if- he- piles a bit of extra on top.
0:27:59 > 0:28:02Join us next time, when more wrongdoers get Caught Red Handed.