Episode 8 Caught Red Handed

Thieves will steal our cars, our valuables, just about anything they can get their hands on.

To cut down on crime and antisocial behaviour, police and other agencies are using new technology and tactics

-when the bad guys are getting caught in the act.

-I can see the man commit the robbery. Lovely. Thanks.

Local councils, shops and businesses are laying traps of their own.

Why should we feel frightened?

And the general public, too, can help catch unsuspecting crooks.

-No way are you getting away.

-We did it for everyone.

-We will name and shame you.

-So they'd better think twice -

they might just get caught red-handed.

Today: a smartphone thief who's not so smart.

His grab and his getaway are both caught on camera.

The CCTV from the train was very good quality.

Also today: the case of the window fitter and a little black bag.

-It was a horrible, sickening feeling.

-I didn't want to look at him.

A light-fingered tradesman feels the long arm of the law

and a dishonest man nicks an honesty box in the wrong neighbourhood.

We will name and shame you.

But will they make an honest man out of him?

It's late at night and three friends sharing their chips have just boarded this train.

Look closely at the young man in the striped bobble hat. It's his birthday.

And although he's with his mates, he chooses to go and stand away from them.

The train pulls in to Seven Kings station in Essex

and some passengers are ready to get off.

Behind the birthday boy, mostly obscured from this angle,

is a young woman who has also been out celebrating. It's her birthday, too.

And up until now she's had a great night out.

Suddenly, the man signals. He wants to leave.

He snatches the woman's expensive smartphone and goes to leg it out of the station.

He falls over at the bottom of the stairs.

But he's soon back on his feet.

Pursued by a passer-by, he races off and finally gets away.

Or so he thinks.

That little trip on the stairs will prove to be his undoing

and his own birthday is about to be ruined.

The case lands on the desk of Detective Constable Gary Wildman of the British Transport Police.

His first job is to speak to the victim.

I took a statement from the young lady who'd been out celebrating.

She's lost all her photographs, the phone. Phones are people's lives.

She's lost everything and I felt for her.

You become personally involved with every complainant/victim.

When a smartphone's stolen, people lose treasured photos, memories, important contacts.

And snatch thefts are common. Another young woman we met, Sophia, has had to save hard

for this new phone. Her last one was snatched, too,

also while she was travelling by train.

These two young guys came up. They were in their 20s.

I had an intuition that something... An eerie feeling about them.

When I looked back, they left, so I continued doing my own thing.

But they hadn't left. They were preparing to strike.

One came from behind me and just snatched my phone.

I was really, really in shock. I wanted to scream, but it just wouldn't come.

I was really in serious shock.

It's a crime that only takes a split second to commit, but can affect the victim for months afterwards.

It has really affected me. I got a new phone.

If I'm on the train, I don't put it out. You feel you can't trust anyone.

All of us can go around doing such things. What will the world be like if we do such things like that?

It's just wrong, totally wrong.

Unfortunately, Sophia's phone and the culprits who stole it are yet to be found.

People, in general, that steal are opportunists. They'll go somewhere where it's easy. They're cowards.

They pick on vulnerable people. Anybody who commits crime should actually do the time.

Back to the first phone snatch we saw at Seven Kings.

Keen to find the thief, Gary puts in an order for the CCTV footage.

Two days later, it arrives.

Over the years of doing investigation, you get breaks.

And the CCTV from the train was actually very good quality.

Fantastic facial. I can see the man commit the robbery.

The thief uses a lot of force to get his hands on the phone.

If he's caught, this could go against him.

The victim was wearing earphones and as the phone was snatched, they didn't quite come out cleanly

causing her pain and discomfort.

Also, where he's grabbed the phone out of her hands, there's no breakages or anything,

but you've got the use of violence and that puts it from the theft into the robbery bracket.

As the robber leaves the train, the station cameras pick it up.

Our chap comes off the middle of the train.

The camera just above us here will pick him up, but it's very dark.

As he comes down, he's on this side here. He comes running up, full pelt,

and he's running so fast he loses his footing. He comes across,

staggers and because of the speed he comes down and hits his head on these stairs.

Picks himself up, continuing the run, and he exits to the left,

across the main road, in-between some buildings.

What interests Gary the most is the man's stumble.

We've had a look afterwards and that is when we've seen our blood splatters up these stairs.

Hurrah! Thank you very much.

The thief's fall might just be his downfall.

Hoping the blood isn't contaminated, after two days open to the elements,

Gary calls crime scene examiner Sergeant Philippa Smith.

In an ideal world, it's always best for crime scene examiners to attend as soon as possible,

which would lessen the problems with contamination.

On the rail network, it's quite often not the best location. There's thousands of travellers every day

where these crimes have happened.

But luckily for Gary and unluckily for the tumbling robber,

he's hit the stairs with enough speed to spray his blood around.

He should have taken more care on a slippery night.

He's hit his head, the blood has squirted out,

and it's gone into this recess, protected by the lip on the steps.

Even two days later when I come back, you can quite clearly see this blood splatter.

Philippa meets up with Gary at the station.

I agreed with him that that was blood, so we agreed I'd take a set of images for him

to help in the investigation.

So if we need to do any further analysis, blood pattern analysis, we can do that.

-I then carried out a presumptive blood test.

-The first test is simply to confirm that it is blood

-and not somebody's spilt chicken tikka masala.

-This is the indicator stick and what we do is

put a very small amount of sterile water onto the tip of the stick.

I would then touch, very lightly, the end of this indicator stick with the sample.

You can see there that it's indicated straight away. That indicates to me that it's blood there.

More swabs are taken and then sent to a laboratory to extract DNA information,

-but this process isn't always successful.

-The blood's gone off and you don't hold your hopes out.

You've got to be on the database.

To find the blood's owner, its DNA can be matched up against people who have had dealings with the police.

The National DNA Database currently holds over 6.5 million profiles

from people who have come to the notice of the police in the past.

It also currently holds over 500,000 profiles from crime scenes.

And would you believe it? This crime doesn't appear to be a one-off for this robber.

He's had a run-in with the police before.

The fax came back with a smiley face. DNA hit. Lovely, thank you.

Great. Cos I've now got a name to the blood from the scene.

The thief is Narinder Singh. There is no address for him

and he's put on the police wanted list and soon he is arrested at a shopping mall in Stratford.

I walked into the custody suite of the police station where Mr Singh was being held on his arrest.

And I just instantly recognised him from the pictures that I'd been dealing with.

And it's quite strange. After my brain had actually said, "It's the same person,"

-I noticed a nice little cut on his head.

-The evidence against Mr Singh is indisputable,

so he chooses not to dispute it and just says, "No comment."

I've got DNA evidence. You can argue until the cows come home. That is you.

I can see from the CCTV footage on the train, which is excellent.

I'm sitting opposite you, I've got your DNA evidence. Where do you want to go with this?

He has no choice but to plead guilty at court and gets 14 months in prison.

It's a good result for Gary.

I mean, it's great. It's brilliant. That's my job.

And after all these years I still enjoy it because that person has gone out there

and taken someone's property that he's not entitled to.

If you're planning on using your phone or MP3 player,

don't sit by the doors. Don't make yourself an easy target.

My advice to the public, whether you're using public transport or you're on the streets,

is be aware of your surroundings.

When you look at your smartphone, you're talking to your mates or listening to music.

It's a very different perspective from a thief. All they see is cash.

You wouldn't go to a bank and draw out £500 and wave it around on the train or in the street.

Why do it with your smartphones? You hold it in the air, making people aware of what you've got.

Coming up: a dishonest man snatches an honesty box.

Why should that one person spoil it?

What he doesn't realise is that his every move is being watched.

And a cappuccino to go, thank you. A man who's had his coffee beans stolen

stirs up an internet campaign to catch the percolator... Sorry, perpetrator.

And he does it with a sense of humour.

But first a betrayal of trust by one of the very people supposed to make our homes more secure.

This man here is a window fitter.

He's just finished work on a house fixing the doors and windows.

He's said his goodbyes to the owner who has trusted him to carry out work in her home.

They both head off.

But five minutes later, the fitter returns.

He must have forgotten something. Maybe it's his equipment.

But hang on... That doesn't look like one of his tools.

-There's a horrible, sickening feeling.

-I felt sick.

Watching the footage back, it was not nice. Not nice at all.

Next, the fitter carries out a black bag.

In it is the homeowner's camera.

This fitter who, moments ago, was exchanging pleasantries with the homeowner

is now stealing from her.

This house belongs to Mark and Susie.

When they first moved in, they needed some building work done.

They spent a lot of money with a double glazing company

installing new doors and windows to make their house extra secure.

A year later, it was clear the windows needed some adjusting,

so they arranged for a window engineer from the same company.

This is the doors he started on.

And these are the doors we've always had a lot of trouble with, even now.

So he adjusted a few bits. I said, "Do you want to come and have a look at the kitchen door?"

So we spoke about the kitchen door. He said, "I don't need to touch that." I went, "No, that's right.

"That's the only door that's fine and working."

Susie has no reason not to trust the fitter.

-She leaves him downstairs to get on with his work.

-That morning, I hadn't made the bed.

I just wanted to go upstairs before he went into our bedroom.

So I left him down here for a couple of minutes, sorting out the door.

She only leaves him for two minutes.

I stood and I spoke to him, apart from those two minutes that I left him.

-He seems friendly enough.

-We were just chatting,

like you do with people you trust.

We learned in the morning that everything was locked.

He'd had to open a couple of doors and the window upstairs. Susie checked those just to make sure...

-But the ones that weren't touched, I didn't...

-You didn't need to.

-I didn't think I had to.

So he'd actually physically unlocked the back door. He knew he was coming back.

He went, then I went, and that was it, really.

But as we now know, that's not the end of it, not for the engineer. He's back.

And a few minutes later he emerges with a copper tank.

He puts it in the van.

It's obvious that he's not finished.

Having sneaked into the house via the kitchen door, he wanders around to see what else he can find.

He comes back out with a black bag, but that's not enough for him.

As if realising he's pushing his luck, he now runs back inside.

But he appears to be a bit more cautious this time, concealing items up his jumper.

Happy with his loot, he decides to call it a day and calmly leaves.

We came back home and I came outside to have a cigarette.

I normally put them into the copper cylinder tank that was left outside the back door.

And I noticed, obviously, it was missing.

Luckily, though, Mark had recently invested in a CCTV kit.

He goes and checks the footage.

You can clearly see the front of the house. So I came in and had a look through all of this.

Watching the tape back, Mark has mixed emotions.

Gutted to start with, but a feeling of, "Well, I've got you.

"You're caught bang to rights."

I couldn't wait to phone the police, but I was more sort of shaking with the horror

that someone's been through our property.

The thief has stolen more than possessions. He's also stolen memories.

It's not until you start looking, you don't realise what had gone missing.

Along with the tank, the engineer had taken money, binoculars, mobile phone, a laptop

and cameras containing treasured holiday photos.

The burglar's crime has an emotional effect on the whole family.

The children, I think, were... I think that's the worst bit.

-How they were affected.

-The eldest daughter did have dreams and things like that.

Mark and Susie feel like they never want strangers in their home again.

It's a big trust issue. It's gone.

Sadly, from one person that's destroyed that.

We want to extend on the house, but I think I'd rather take a bricklaying course.

In court, the window fitter admitted to the crime

and was given an 18-month suspended sentence,

200 hours unpaid work and an order to pay £100 in compensation.

The thief tried to nab a camera, but it was a camera that nabbed him.

I bought the CCTV as just a little gimmick, really.

It was a gadget. I do like my gadgets.

But now, looking back at it, I think it's the best money I've actually spent.

-It's the best gadget you've got.

-Yeah, it is.

We've all heard that saying, "You need eyes in the back of your head."

Mark and Susie had the extra eyes of CCTV.

When a suspect is presented with CCTV evidence,

a guilty plea is more than likely.

It's hard to dispute when they see themselves on camera.

A guilty plea also means the case can be dealt with quickly, saving time and money for police and public

and providing closure for the victim.

These days, of course, we don't even have to be at home to keep an eye on our property.

Like Tim Lake, who was sent some images on his smartphone that gave him the chance to have some fun.

This attractive property belongs to 29-year-old Tim.

He's out at work when a smart security system he's installed sends him images

of a woman approaching his front door. At first glance, she looks like a neighbour,

but instead of knocking, she bends down, picks something up, then flip-flops away with a package.

Tim is outraged. You see, he's especially partial to a certain type of coffee

and so it appears is this woman. She's pinched the package of coffee he gets delivered by mail order.

When he calms down, Tim comes up with a cunning campaign.

Using pictures from his CCTV he creates a poster.

He sticks it up all around his neighbourhood and on the internet.

If you look closely, you can see that Tim has a sense of humour.

Description of perpetrator: Jerk.

Distinguishing Marks: Shameful and super awkward running style.

Yep. I'm not sure she'd win an Olympic medal.

And who'd have thought a little coffee could cause such a splash?

Because the poster goes viral. Tim even ends up on television news.

Hearing about it, the coffee company kindly sends a replacement package.

The thief is still at large.

Tim's hoping someone just might recognise her and spill the beans.

On Caught Red-Handed, we're seeing how members of the public can catch their own crooks

using these user-friendly little cameras and that's just what happens next when an opportunist thief

helps himself to a drink and a bit more besides.

The Gower Peninsula in South Wales is renowned for its stunning countryside and beautiful beaches.

It's a popular spot with tourists.

-Kids, do you want ice cream?

-Yeah!

There's lots of passing trade for local people

who set up roadside stalls selling things like fruit, veg, even ice creams to visitors.

-These look lovely.

-It's a great arrangement. Tourists like the local produce

and the locals make some extra cash, trusting strangers to leave the money in the honesty boxes

they leave out by the side of the road. Unfortunately, whilst most visitors come to the Gower

for some good, honest fun, some aren't quite so honest.

On a sunny summer evening, a car slowly travels down a quiet country road,

then turns around and drives back slowly.

The car stops by this roadside stall, which has a fridge.

The man gets out of the passenger side. He opens the fridge and helps himself to some cans of drink.

The driver keeps the engine running. Is this man going to pay? No way.

What's more, he takes a shifty look around and then steals the trust box full of money

and makes a sharp getaway.

The box, the money and the stolen drinks belonged to local resident Mark Button.

My initial thoughts were disgusted by somebody taking that.

It was premeditated and they came purposely to rob from me.

Mark has lived in the hamlet of Pitton his whole life.

His family have farmed here for generations. He's a photographer now,

but keeps his hands on the land by growing veg. He had the perfect idea to shift the surplus.

About three years ago I put the trust box into place, selling the excess produce I grow.

The kids came off the beach

wanting water, so I put some drinks in the fridge

and ice cream from a local producer in Swansea. Kids seem to love it.

People came away with a smile. As I walk past people eating ice cream, happy days, enjoy it.

It works really well.

But they're not all happy days.

The theft of his honesty box is not the first time Mark's had a problem with unwelcome visitors.

About a year ago, we had a major burglary here

of which two of the farm sheds were broken into. The day after, it got broken into again.

So I bought alarm systems and I bought a CCTV system.

And it's those same cameras, already set up from the last time,

that catch Mark's latest roadside raider red-handed.

From monitors set up in his house, he can look through the footage.

He goes into the fridge, taking a few drinks,

and then looked inside the money box, grabbed it, ran back, jumped in

and the car sped off with the door open. Like a big heist!

It turns out, frustratingly, that Mark only narrowly misses catching the thieves in the act.

Just 30 seconds after the robbery, he'd popped out to check the fridge.

As I walked back, I looked at the fridge and noticed the trust box had gone.

Unfortunately, it turns out not to be the only honesty box that's gone missing.

Further up the lane, a neighbour, James, sells home-made jam and Eccles cakes.

Like Mark, he leaves out a trust box. Like Mark, he found it'd gone.

We think ours went the same time. That's when we noticed it had gone.

Obviously, putting two and two together, we think it's more than likely the same guys

have taken the two pots.

No, it's happened twice now in the last three weeks that the honest box has gone.

The amount of money taken may be small, but the criminals didn't know the bigger picture.

Claire has cerebral palsy. They are trying to raise money for treatment.

I'm using the money because we want to take her to America for an operation

to hopefully cure her cerebral palsy.

We're on our way to try to make £45,000 for the operation.

Back down the road, Mark isn't prepared to let the culprits get away with it.

-He decides to harness the power of the internet.

-My first thought was social media.

Within 24 hours, the friend requests started coming in.

Over 1,000 people responded to me. Even somebody in Australia sent me an email saying it was over there.

So that was overwhelming and within 24 hours.

As interest grew online, it seems the pressure mounted on the thief.

A week after it happened, the gentleman... I shouldn't say gentleman. Perpetrator.

..has handed himself in.

And that does show the power of media, the power of people.

Yes, maybe some honesty rubbed off from the honesty box

because just a few days after the dirty deed, the man actually hands himself in.

He has to pay compensation

and is given six months community service.

Since then, both Mark and his neighbour James have had no more thefts,

and they are determined not to stop trusting people.

Why should somebody spoil it for everybody else and put a sour feeling in people's hearts?

An opportunist thief will take the chance wherever they see it,

as long as they don't think they're being watched.

A sign as simple as "CCTV" might just be enough to put them off.

And Mark has a message for anyone thinking of coming to the Gower Peninsula with dishonest intent,

which with so many CCTV-savvy people around nowadays,

is perhaps a message for all would-be criminals out there.

If we do catch you, if we do see you, we will name and shame you.

That's all for now. Join us next time when the police and public catch more crooks red-handed.

Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd