0:00:02 > 0:00:05Thieves will steal our cash, our cars, our valuables -
0:00:05 > 0:00:07just about anything they can get their hands on.
0:00:09 > 0:00:11But now the police are using cutting-edge technology
0:00:11 > 0:00:13to catch the bad guys.
0:00:13 > 0:00:15We want to make sure we've got a concrete case.
0:00:15 > 0:00:17Enough evidence to convict at court.
0:00:17 > 0:00:20Local councils, shops and businesses are fighting crime
0:00:20 > 0:00:23with their own tricks and traps.
0:00:23 > 0:00:27It's just unbelievable that she thinks she can get away with this.
0:00:27 > 0:00:30And the public are using secret cameras to make sure
0:00:30 > 0:00:32the crooks get their comeuppance.
0:00:32 > 0:00:35Fair means or foul, I was going to get rid of him.
0:00:35 > 0:00:36I thought, "We've got her."
0:00:36 > 0:00:38- WOMAN LAUGHS - And I was so happy!
0:00:38 > 0:00:40Thank God.
0:00:40 > 0:00:44So, anyone who's up to no good had better think twice -
0:00:44 > 0:00:47they might just get caught red-handed.
0:00:51 > 0:00:55Today, when Mick hears a knock on his front door late one night...
0:00:55 > 0:00:57LOUD KNOCKING
0:00:57 > 0:01:01..he has no idea of the horror he's about to face.
0:01:01 > 0:01:03The knife - that's what scared me.
0:01:03 > 0:01:06He said, "Where's your money? Where's your money?"
0:01:06 > 0:01:08I said, "I haven't got any money."
0:01:08 > 0:01:12Mick is tied to a chair by a robber, who takes away his cash card,
0:01:12 > 0:01:17threatening to come back if the card doesn't work, and it doesn't.
0:01:17 > 0:01:19I suddenly realised, I gave him...
0:01:19 > 0:01:23He rang my number. I gave him my Post Office number.
0:01:23 > 0:01:25Can Mick's neighbour Joyce come to the rescue?
0:01:37 > 0:01:41Also today, Lisa and Rob are heartbroken when someone
0:01:41 > 0:01:45breaks into their restaurant and gets away with £4,000.
0:01:47 > 0:01:50Then, six weeks later, they're burgled again,
0:01:50 > 0:01:52and there's even worse to come when the cameras
0:01:52 > 0:01:55reveal who this burglar is.
0:01:55 > 0:01:58It was just a total shock horror that it's somebody that's
0:01:58 > 0:02:01right on your doorstep, right in your face every day.
0:02:03 > 0:02:07Also later, these two wooden figures, Mr and Mrs Log,
0:02:07 > 0:02:10advertise a popular wedding venue.
0:02:10 > 0:02:13They're meant to attract happy couples, not thieves.
0:02:15 > 0:02:20But this innocent-looking pair decide it's time Mr and Mrs Log
0:02:20 > 0:02:21took a permanent honeymoon.
0:02:28 > 0:02:31Fortunately, burglars generally don't like to break into a house
0:02:31 > 0:02:32when someone's at home -
0:02:32 > 0:02:35they'd rather take their time, uninterrupted -
0:02:35 > 0:02:38but we're about to see one of the rare exceptions to the rule.
0:02:43 > 0:02:47In the town of Gainsborough in Lincolnshire, two close friends,
0:02:47 > 0:02:49Mick and Joyce, live a few doors apart.
0:02:49 > 0:02:53Mick is 75 and Joyce 78.
0:02:53 > 0:02:57Mick and I's relationship is just a good, lovely friendship.
0:02:57 > 0:02:59Joyce is Joyce, you know?
0:02:59 > 0:03:03She's a good neighbour, but she talks a lot.
0:03:03 > 0:03:05Not like me.
0:03:05 > 0:03:07Mick and Joyce met five years ago
0:03:07 > 0:03:09when she moved here from Cleethorpes.
0:03:09 > 0:03:13She wanted a new start after her husband had passed away.
0:03:13 > 0:03:15I didn't know anybody.
0:03:15 > 0:03:18I had no friends, no family - nothing.
0:03:18 > 0:03:23I've showed her around town and all that, and helped out and that,
0:03:23 > 0:03:25which I still do.
0:03:25 > 0:03:26I do all the jobs for her.
0:03:26 > 0:03:29He's very, very clever with his hands.
0:03:29 > 0:03:30He can do anything.
0:03:31 > 0:03:34Mick was once married himself but now lives alone.
0:03:34 > 0:03:35Being community-minded,
0:03:35 > 0:03:38after he heard about a theft in the neighbourhood,
0:03:38 > 0:03:41he installed a CCTV camera above his front door.
0:03:41 > 0:03:43He looks after the street, to be honest.
0:03:43 > 0:03:45He's like the guardian of the street.
0:03:46 > 0:03:48But Mick is about to need a guardian himself,
0:03:48 > 0:03:51when a violent armed robber invades his home.
0:03:51 > 0:03:55A very rare crime, but one that proves terrifying -
0:03:55 > 0:03:57not just for Mick, but for Joyce, too.
0:03:59 > 0:04:02It's 10.30 on a Sunday night,
0:04:02 > 0:04:07and Mick's security camera shows the street outside his house is quiet.
0:04:07 > 0:04:09Mick's on his own inside when, suddenly,
0:04:09 > 0:04:13a man wearing a balaclava walks up to his front door.
0:04:13 > 0:04:15There was a knock on the door.
0:04:15 > 0:04:19I thought, "Well, that'll be Joyce cos she's always knocking."
0:04:19 > 0:04:22But it isn't the friendly face of his neighbour that greets him.
0:04:22 > 0:04:26Mick's camera picks up the sound as the man forces his way in,
0:04:26 > 0:04:29barging the pensioner out of the way.
0:04:29 > 0:04:31LOUD THUMP, INDISTINCT YELLING
0:04:37 > 0:04:42He pushed his way in, and knocked me over the settee.
0:04:42 > 0:04:46Of course, I got off the settee and tried to go for him,
0:04:46 > 0:04:48but he was a bit more stronger than me.
0:04:48 > 0:04:51If I was already stood up,
0:04:51 > 0:04:55I probably could've tackled him a bit more.
0:04:55 > 0:04:58The man pulls out a knife and threatens Mick.
0:04:58 > 0:05:02I thought, "Crikey, he means it."
0:05:02 > 0:05:05He said, "Where's your money? I said, "I haven't got any money."
0:05:05 > 0:05:08He said, "You must have money. You must have money."
0:05:08 > 0:05:13So he pulled all my drawers out and looked through that.
0:05:13 > 0:05:16My wallet and that, he emptied my wallet.
0:05:16 > 0:05:18He finds Mick's bank card.
0:05:18 > 0:05:21He says, "I'll stab you. What's your number?"
0:05:21 > 0:05:23I was scared - I'll be honest.
0:05:23 > 0:05:25He was definitely going to go and do it.
0:05:25 > 0:05:27I thought, "Crikey..."
0:05:27 > 0:05:28So I gave him the number.
0:05:29 > 0:05:33Then the man says he wants to search the bedroom upstairs.
0:05:33 > 0:05:37He had my arm behind my back like that,
0:05:37 > 0:05:41and a knife in my back, and when we were going upstairs, I thought,
0:05:41 > 0:05:43"Shall I knock him downstairs?"
0:05:44 > 0:05:47I thought, "Well, I'll be in trouble if I knocked him downstairs."
0:05:48 > 0:05:50They go into the bedroom.
0:05:50 > 0:05:52The first thing he did was get my phone,
0:05:52 > 0:05:57and ripped it out, and he pulled the telephone line out,
0:05:57 > 0:05:58and I said to him then, "What are you doing?"
0:05:58 > 0:06:00He goes, "Smashing it."
0:06:00 > 0:06:02When he finds there's no money,
0:06:02 > 0:06:05the robber grabs the telephone wires he's ripped from the wall
0:06:05 > 0:06:07and takes Mick back downstairs.
0:06:07 > 0:06:10He orders him to sit on a dining chair.
0:06:10 > 0:06:12He said, "Put your hands behind the chair."
0:06:12 > 0:06:16He said, "If you don't, I'll stab you."
0:06:16 > 0:06:20The man puts the knife down and ties Mick to the chair
0:06:20 > 0:06:21with the telephone wires.
0:06:21 > 0:06:24Mick senses an opportunity to take him on.
0:06:24 > 0:06:27I thought, "If I get free, I'll go for him."
0:06:27 > 0:06:31The man starts throwing some of Mick's possessions onto the settee.
0:06:31 > 0:06:32I said to him, "What are you doing that for?"
0:06:32 > 0:06:34He said, "You shut up."
0:06:34 > 0:06:40He got the tea towel out of my kitchen drawer, ripped it in half,
0:06:40 > 0:06:44and stuffed it in my mouth, so I couldn't shout out.
0:06:44 > 0:06:47While the robber's distracted looking for valuables,
0:06:47 > 0:06:50Mick frantically tries to loosen the wires binding his arms to the
0:06:50 > 0:06:52spindles of the chair.
0:06:52 > 0:06:56And so I cut my hands trying to free myself.
0:06:56 > 0:06:58The robber steals a phone and an iPad,
0:06:58 > 0:07:01then tells Mick he's going to a cashpoint machine
0:07:01 > 0:07:04with Mick's bank card, to take out his money.
0:07:04 > 0:07:06He said, if the bank number weren't right,
0:07:06 > 0:07:09he definitely was going to finish us.
0:07:09 > 0:07:13The thief leaves by the back door, locks it and takes the key with him.
0:07:14 > 0:07:17I thought, "Crikey! He's going to come back."
0:07:17 > 0:07:20I've got to get out of here once he's gone.
0:07:20 > 0:07:24Mick notices he can still get out of the front door.
0:07:24 > 0:07:26He's left the front door key in.
0:07:26 > 0:07:29I thought, "Right, I've got to get out of here.
0:07:29 > 0:07:33Mick pushes with all his might against the back of the chair.
0:07:36 > 0:07:38I broke the chair somehow.
0:07:38 > 0:07:41I don't know how I did it, but I broke the chair.
0:07:41 > 0:07:44I went to the front door and went out.
0:07:44 > 0:07:47The camera outside shows Mick getting out of the house,
0:07:47 > 0:07:52with one of his arms still tied to the chair spindles behind his back.
0:07:52 > 0:07:55Somebody were down at the bottom of the street.
0:07:55 > 0:07:57I thought, "Is that him?"
0:07:57 > 0:08:00Mick notices that Joyce's light is on.
0:08:00 > 0:08:01He races to her house.
0:08:01 > 0:08:03There were this banging on my glass door,
0:08:03 > 0:08:07and I'm thinking, "Oh, dear. Should I open it?"
0:08:11 > 0:08:13Joyce hears Mick's voice and opens the door.
0:08:14 > 0:08:18Mick comes rushing in, and he were tied to the back of a chair.
0:08:18 > 0:08:22I said, "He's come in, and he's coming back."
0:08:22 > 0:08:25And he's going, "Lock the door. Lock the door. He's after me."
0:08:25 > 0:08:27She thought I was joking!
0:08:27 > 0:08:32But he were in such a distressed state.
0:08:32 > 0:08:36Joyce cuts Mick free from the wires behind his back with a bread knife.
0:08:36 > 0:08:38She phones the police.
0:08:38 > 0:08:41This is from the recording of her 999 call.
0:09:24 > 0:09:28Within minutes, police officers reach Joyce's house.
0:09:28 > 0:09:29I was sort of like,
0:09:29 > 0:09:33"Oh, good. The police are here. They'll take over."
0:09:33 > 0:09:37A forensic team is sent to Mick's home to gather evidence.
0:09:37 > 0:09:40Mick is asked not to go back until they've finished.
0:09:40 > 0:09:42I said, "Oh, he'll have to stop with me."
0:09:42 > 0:09:44I never even gave it a second thought.
0:09:44 > 0:09:45She was very good about it.
0:09:47 > 0:09:49Mick is safe for now,
0:09:49 > 0:09:53but a dangerous criminal is still at large.
0:09:53 > 0:09:54SIREN WAILS
0:09:54 > 0:09:57Using a combination of modern technology
0:09:57 > 0:10:00and clever detective work, the police set out to get
0:10:00 > 0:10:04this dangerous man off the street in hours, not days.
0:10:04 > 0:10:08Someone who would do this sort of crime would be an incredibly
0:10:08 > 0:10:10desperate individual.
0:10:10 > 0:10:13We are all very, very determined to get this individual into custody.
0:10:20 > 0:10:23A thief breaks into a restaurant.
0:10:23 > 0:10:27For starters, he rifles through cupboards,
0:10:27 > 0:10:31before moving onto his main course, the till,
0:10:31 > 0:10:37but he's left some clues behind, so he may yet get his just deserts.
0:10:43 > 0:10:46In the centre of Barnstaple in Devon,
0:10:46 > 0:10:49married couple Lisa and Rob run this Mexican restaurant.
0:10:49 > 0:10:53They took it over after a previous long-standing restaurant on the site
0:10:53 > 0:10:54closed down.
0:10:55 > 0:10:58Virtually everyone who lives in Barnstaple has had some sort of
0:10:58 > 0:11:00experience in this building.
0:11:00 > 0:11:03Lots of people have experienced their 21st birthday parties here.
0:11:03 > 0:11:05I've got friends who met each other and had their first kiss here,
0:11:05 > 0:11:07and got married.
0:11:07 > 0:11:10Yeah, so good, good experiences for lots of people.
0:11:10 > 0:11:12I think it was just something in the back of our minds,
0:11:12 > 0:11:14that it would be nice to own it, I guess, yeah,
0:11:14 > 0:11:17and see what we can do with it.
0:11:17 > 0:11:20Rob and Lisa hadn't run a restaurant before
0:11:20 > 0:11:22and, in the beginning, things didn't go to plan.
0:11:22 > 0:11:26They discovered they were about to have a new mouth to feed
0:11:26 > 0:11:27when Lisa fell pregnant.
0:11:27 > 0:11:30In an ideal world, you wouldn't be having a baby at the same time
0:11:30 > 0:11:32as picking up the key to a business.
0:11:33 > 0:11:36The renovation was being done with, yeah, a baby in a pram
0:11:36 > 0:11:38on site every day, basically.
0:11:38 > 0:11:40She really was no problem,
0:11:40 > 0:11:43because I'd carry her around and she was fine.
0:11:43 > 0:11:46Lisa and Rob completed their total refurbishment of the restaurant
0:11:46 > 0:11:50and, after a successful opening night party, they never looked back.
0:11:52 > 0:11:54Lots of our friends and family came to that, which was lovely,
0:11:54 > 0:11:56but it's a massive learning curve,
0:11:56 > 0:11:58and every day for us is a learning curve.
0:11:58 > 0:12:02But the couple's learning curve is about to get even steeper
0:12:02 > 0:12:05when a neighbour turns out to be not very neighbourly.
0:12:11 > 0:12:14It's the middle of the summer, 8.30am.
0:12:14 > 0:12:17Rob has come in to give the premises a clean-up when he's shocked to
0:12:17 > 0:12:19discover signs of a break-in.
0:12:19 > 0:12:21Nothing in the restaurant was touched.
0:12:21 > 0:12:24It wasn't until I went upstairs to the office that I saw
0:12:24 > 0:12:26the office door had been kicked in.
0:12:27 > 0:12:31And then Rob remembers to his horror that, unusually,
0:12:31 > 0:12:35last night they had left £4,000 in cash in the office.
0:12:35 > 0:12:37We were paying wages the next day.
0:12:37 > 0:12:39Obviously it all goes through payroll,
0:12:39 > 0:12:42but, stupidly, we thought we were being intelligent
0:12:42 > 0:12:44by saving bank charges.
0:12:44 > 0:12:46The thief found the money.
0:12:46 > 0:12:48The whole £4,000 has gone.
0:12:48 > 0:12:51It's a crippling blow to the business.
0:12:51 > 0:12:53It was a downer to say the least.
0:12:53 > 0:12:58And to make things worse, the couple couldn't claim it back on insurance.
0:12:58 > 0:13:01We'd taken out a rushed insurance policy online
0:13:01 > 0:13:04when I'd gone into labour, hadn't read the small print...
0:13:04 > 0:13:06We weren't insured.
0:13:06 > 0:13:10Unfortunately it was just something that we didn't even consider
0:13:10 > 0:13:11was going to happen.
0:13:11 > 0:13:14The burglar has broken in through the window of the staff toilet
0:13:14 > 0:13:16and utility room on the third floor.
0:13:16 > 0:13:19A single window accessed over a flat roof.
0:13:19 > 0:13:20How on earth would somebody have...?
0:13:20 > 0:13:24Did they get a ladder and climb up three storeys?
0:13:24 > 0:13:27The intruder hasn't been caught on their CCTV system,
0:13:27 > 0:13:30as it only covers the restaurant downstairs,
0:13:30 > 0:13:32and there's more bad news for the couple.
0:13:32 > 0:13:36When the police arrive, they find no forensic evidence either.
0:13:36 > 0:13:39There's no way of tracking this burglar down.
0:13:40 > 0:13:45People like ourselves work long hours and hard days
0:13:45 > 0:13:48to try and pay rent, and then you...
0:13:48 > 0:13:49SHE CHUCKLES
0:13:49 > 0:13:52You get somebody who takes and gets away with it.
0:13:54 > 0:13:58Lisa and Rob have no choice but to carry on as best they can.
0:13:58 > 0:14:00Worried the burglar might come back,
0:14:00 > 0:14:02they stop keeping cash in the office,
0:14:02 > 0:14:04and secure the doors and windows.
0:14:06 > 0:14:07But just six weeks later,
0:14:07 > 0:14:10their business comes under attack again.
0:14:10 > 0:14:14It's 2am, well after closing time,
0:14:14 > 0:14:16but there's someone in the restaurant.
0:14:18 > 0:14:22In the pitch dark, he makes no effort to hide his face,
0:14:22 > 0:14:24apparently unaware there are infrared cameras
0:14:24 > 0:14:26capturing his every move.
0:14:28 > 0:14:31By the time he walks into the bar area, he's pulled his hood up.
0:14:31 > 0:14:34He must have spotted the camera above the till.
0:14:36 > 0:14:40The intruder tries to prise open the cash register using a screwdriver.
0:14:40 > 0:14:43He works away at it for a full five minutes.
0:14:49 > 0:14:51He's not getting anywhere,
0:14:51 > 0:14:55so the thief hauls the till drawer to the floor
0:14:55 > 0:14:57and tries to force it open with his feet.
0:14:59 > 0:15:01He struggles on for a few minutes,
0:15:01 > 0:15:05but all his persistence gets him is a cut on his wrist.
0:15:05 > 0:15:08He dabs at it with a tissue, and then wipes it on his leg.
0:15:10 > 0:15:12In the end, the thief gives up trying to open it
0:15:12 > 0:15:15and decides to go for a takeaway solution,
0:15:15 > 0:15:16a carry-out from the restaurant,
0:15:16 > 0:15:18taking the whole till drawer with him.
0:15:22 > 0:15:26Later that morning, when Rob comes in to open up,
0:15:26 > 0:15:28he gets a sinking sense of deja vu.
0:15:33 > 0:15:35I saw the till drawer was missing.
0:15:37 > 0:15:41A big mess behind the bar, blood all over the floor and the fridge...
0:15:41 > 0:15:43Just shocking we'd been burgled again
0:15:43 > 0:15:45in such a relatively short space of time.
0:15:45 > 0:15:48It was just like, you know, "What on earth's going on?"
0:15:49 > 0:15:51Rob fetches a friend from the business next door,
0:15:51 > 0:15:54and together they check the rest of the building.
0:15:55 > 0:15:58You could clearly see that they'd come through the window again,
0:15:58 > 0:16:01because they'd almost pulled it off its hinges.
0:16:03 > 0:16:06In this burglary, there was no cash in the office to steal,
0:16:06 > 0:16:10so the intruder has gone downstairs to the restaurant.
0:16:10 > 0:16:13There was a £200 float in the till drawer he's stolen.
0:16:15 > 0:16:18Again, the police arrive quickly with their forensic team,
0:16:18 > 0:16:22and the culprit this time will be less likely to get away with it,
0:16:22 > 0:16:23as he's left blood on the floor.
0:16:24 > 0:16:28They had lots to work with this time.
0:16:28 > 0:16:29As well as the blood,
0:16:29 > 0:16:32possibly identifying the burglar through his DNA,
0:16:32 > 0:16:36there's this high-quality CCTV evidence.
0:16:36 > 0:16:38By now, Lisa has rushed in from home
0:16:38 > 0:16:41and, when she views the camera's footage, she gets a shock.
0:16:41 > 0:16:45The burglar is one of their restaurant's near neighbours.
0:16:45 > 0:16:47As soon as I saw him come through, I was like...disbelief.
0:16:47 > 0:16:49Is that the guy in the flat?
0:16:49 > 0:16:51This man, who lives in a flat nearby,
0:16:51 > 0:16:54has been walking past their door every day.
0:16:56 > 0:16:59He's seen the hard work Rob and Lisa have put into
0:16:59 > 0:17:01reviving the restaurant,
0:17:01 > 0:17:05but he's obviously just seen it as an opportunity to steal from them.
0:17:07 > 0:17:08It's like our home.
0:17:08 > 0:17:10You know, we spend most of our life here.
0:17:10 > 0:17:12It's our space that we welcome our friends and our family
0:17:12 > 0:17:15and our customers into, and then you have somebody like this.
0:17:15 > 0:17:19And the shock-horror that it's somebody that lives so close
0:17:19 > 0:17:22and he is literally living on our doorstep...
0:17:22 > 0:17:26Lisa's dad shoots video evidence that solves the mystery of how the
0:17:26 > 0:17:28burglar got to the upstairs windows.
0:17:47 > 0:17:50So they know how the thief did it, and they know who he is,
0:17:50 > 0:17:53and the police recognise the man, too.
0:17:53 > 0:17:54They go and arrest him.
0:17:56 > 0:18:00There's no evidence to link him to the first restaurant burglary,
0:18:00 > 0:18:02but their neighbour admits to committing the second.
0:18:07 > 0:18:10In court, the 34-year-old man was convicted of burglary.
0:18:10 > 0:18:14He was ordered to wear an electronic tag for three months,
0:18:14 > 0:18:20pay £205 in compensation and complete 15 days of rehabilitation.
0:18:25 > 0:18:26After the court hearing,
0:18:26 > 0:18:29Rob and Lisa were pleased to find out that their neighbour
0:18:29 > 0:18:32had been given an eviction notice on his flat,
0:18:32 > 0:18:34so they can get on with running their restaurant
0:18:34 > 0:18:37without looking over their shoulder all the time.
0:18:38 > 0:18:41Coming up, we've got our first year anniversary party
0:18:41 > 0:18:45for the restaurant, so that's in planning at the moment.
0:18:45 > 0:18:47We're building our brand-new cocktail bar,
0:18:47 > 0:18:49which would have been done before the burglaries,
0:18:49 > 0:18:52but, obviously, finances wouldn't allow that.
0:18:52 > 0:18:55That's all coming up and we're all really excited about it.
0:19:02 > 0:19:05Lisa and Rob were unlucky that, when they got burgled,
0:19:05 > 0:19:09they had an unusually large amount of money on the premises.
0:19:09 > 0:19:12Now, many of us will have cash or high-value items in our home
0:19:12 > 0:19:15at some point, so what can we do to protect them?
0:19:16 > 0:19:19Even if people have good security systems,
0:19:19 > 0:19:22such as alarms or CCTV systems,
0:19:22 > 0:19:25it's never a good idea to leave valuable items lying around.
0:19:25 > 0:19:26You're just tempting people.
0:19:26 > 0:19:28Think about how you can secure them.
0:19:28 > 0:19:31If it's a lot of money, can you move it to a bank?
0:19:31 > 0:19:34If it's items of jewellery or passports, invest in a safe.
0:19:34 > 0:19:37And it can be combination or key.
0:19:37 > 0:19:41I would advise combination because keys can be stolen or misplaced.
0:19:41 > 0:19:43The harder it is to find the safe, the better,
0:19:43 > 0:19:45so, again, don't put it in the obvious places,
0:19:45 > 0:19:46such as a master bedroom.
0:19:46 > 0:19:48Think about other locations in the house,
0:19:48 > 0:19:50which could be at the back of a cupboard,
0:19:50 > 0:19:52which is less likely for the burglar to find it.
0:19:52 > 0:19:56If people find that safe, that will then become the target,
0:19:56 > 0:20:00so it really needs to be secure, perhaps bolted to the floor...
0:20:00 > 0:20:02Safes come in lots of different shapes and sizes.
0:20:02 > 0:20:04They can be masked as a cola bottle.
0:20:04 > 0:20:06They may be a plug on the wall that can pull out.
0:20:06 > 0:20:08They may be an old-fashioned safe.
0:20:08 > 0:20:09It doesn't really matter -
0:20:09 > 0:20:11the important thing is you pick the right one for you,
0:20:11 > 0:20:14you take advice, and you get it securely in your property
0:20:14 > 0:20:15as soon as possible.
0:20:23 > 0:20:26This loving couple are walking into a bar
0:20:26 > 0:20:27that's a popular wedding venue.
0:20:27 > 0:20:30Such obvious affection for each other would warm
0:20:30 > 0:20:33even the most wooden heart.
0:20:33 > 0:20:36I'm sure Mr and Mrs Log would agree.
0:20:36 > 0:20:40They're a wooden bride and groom on permanent display outside the venue.
0:20:41 > 0:20:44Well, maybe not that permanent.
0:20:44 > 0:20:48This pair of lovers have clearly kindled a burning yearning
0:20:48 > 0:20:51for the two figures fashioned from firewood,
0:20:51 > 0:20:54and, as he's leaving, the man takes Mr Log in one arm
0:20:54 > 0:20:56and Mrs Log in the other,
0:20:56 > 0:21:00walks them down the aisle, and wanders off with them altogether.
0:21:02 > 0:21:05The wedding venue owners are understandably upset to find that
0:21:05 > 0:21:10their two matrimonial mascots have suddenly eloped,
0:21:10 > 0:21:13so they share this video on social media in a bid to find
0:21:13 > 0:21:18who's stolen Mr and Mrs Log before they're used for barbecue fuel.
0:21:18 > 0:21:21The owners also tell the police,
0:21:21 > 0:21:24but it doesn't need special branch to solve the case
0:21:24 > 0:21:26because, a few days later,
0:21:26 > 0:21:30the woman sheepishly brings back the woody wife and groom.
0:21:30 > 0:21:32Maybe when she saw the video was online,
0:21:32 > 0:21:35she was worried people would twig it was her.
0:21:37 > 0:21:39And there's more good news -
0:21:39 > 0:21:42Mr and Mrs Log have just had some little saplings of their own.
0:21:42 > 0:21:44Twins, in fact! Aw...
0:21:55 > 0:21:57In Gainsborough, an armed man has stormed into
0:21:57 > 0:22:0275-year-old Mick's house and robbed him at knife-point.
0:22:02 > 0:22:05Robbery is extremely rare when someone is at home,
0:22:05 > 0:22:07but that's no consolation to Mick.
0:22:07 > 0:22:09I was scared - I'll be honest.
0:22:09 > 0:22:12That's the first time I was scared.
0:22:12 > 0:22:14The robber has stolen Mick's bank card,
0:22:14 > 0:22:18and gone to a cashpoint machine to withdraw money.
0:22:18 > 0:22:20I suddenly realised I gave him the wrong number.
0:22:20 > 0:22:23I gave him my Post Office number.
0:22:24 > 0:22:29But he did say he was coming back if it was the wrong number.
0:22:29 > 0:22:30Mick has taken refuge in the house of
0:22:30 > 0:22:33his close friend and neighbour Joyce.
0:22:33 > 0:22:35I was terrified.
0:22:35 > 0:22:36He could have died.
0:22:38 > 0:22:41Joyce has called 999, and the case is given to
0:22:41 > 0:22:45Detective Inspector Mark Kirwan.
0:22:45 > 0:22:48He fears there's a serial armed robber on the loose.
0:22:48 > 0:22:50Three hours before Mick was robbed,
0:22:50 > 0:22:52an 88-year-old woman who lived nearby
0:22:52 > 0:22:55was also attacked at knife-point.
0:22:55 > 0:22:58As happened to Mick, the terrified pensioner's phone line
0:22:58 > 0:23:00had been used to tie her up.
0:23:00 > 0:23:02It looks like it's the same man.
0:23:02 > 0:23:05It was a very, very serious incident indeed.
0:23:05 > 0:23:09You know, we don't see that type of crime in Gainsborough,
0:23:09 > 0:23:12so, when the call came in from Joyce,
0:23:12 > 0:23:15it immediately rang alarm bells that we might actually have
0:23:15 > 0:23:20a series of very violent crimes targeting elderly people.
0:23:20 > 0:23:24Words cannot describe how despicable these crimes are.
0:23:24 > 0:23:25SIREN WAILS
0:23:25 > 0:23:28Mark increases the number of officers on patrol,
0:23:28 > 0:23:30and primes them to respond immediately
0:23:30 > 0:23:33if any similar crime is reported.
0:23:33 > 0:23:36He also sends an officer wearing a bodycam into Mick's house
0:23:36 > 0:23:40to check the robber hasn't returned to carry out his threat.
0:23:40 > 0:23:43I'm just going to search the house, but I suspect they've long gone.
0:23:43 > 0:23:47Other officers are sent to Joyce's home to interview Mick.
0:23:47 > 0:23:50We know that he's taken Mick's bank card.
0:23:50 > 0:23:53This person is going to go and try and use that bank card.
0:23:53 > 0:23:57While a forensics team scours Mick's house, looking for evidence,
0:23:57 > 0:24:01other officers confirm the robber has tried to use Mick's card,
0:24:01 > 0:24:04but wasn't able to withdraw any money.
0:24:05 > 0:24:08They view council street camera recordings from the roads
0:24:08 > 0:24:11between the cashpoint machine and Mick's house.
0:24:11 > 0:24:13We know that our suspect has said that
0:24:13 > 0:24:16if Mick gave him the wrong number or he couldn't get any cash,
0:24:16 > 0:24:18that he would come back.
0:24:18 > 0:24:22This CCTV picks up where our suspect is walking down the street,
0:24:22 > 0:24:25following the failed attempt at the ATM,
0:24:25 > 0:24:27and on his way back to Mick's home address.
0:24:29 > 0:24:32It's chilling, seeing the man approaching Mick's road.
0:24:32 > 0:24:35It looks like he is going to carry out his threat,
0:24:35 > 0:24:38but then he sees police cars outside Mick's house,
0:24:38 > 0:24:41and must realise his victim has escaped.
0:24:41 > 0:24:45He's then turned around and come back out of the street.
0:24:45 > 0:24:49What we're seeing here is he appears to reverse up to the bin.
0:24:49 > 0:24:52He's clearly putting something in the bin,
0:24:52 > 0:24:54and not doing it in a very natural way.
0:24:54 > 0:24:55He's facing away from the bin,
0:24:55 > 0:24:58and depositing something behind his back.
0:24:58 > 0:25:01Mark immediately sends an officer to search through the rubbish bin,
0:25:01 > 0:25:05and he finds a key which fits Mick's back door,
0:25:05 > 0:25:08so the man caught on CCTV must be the robber,
0:25:08 > 0:25:11but the image isn't clear enough to identify him.
0:25:11 > 0:25:14What is clear is this man is desperate.
0:25:14 > 0:25:18He hasn't got any of Mick's money, so he still needs cash.
0:25:18 > 0:25:21It was my fear that we were going to have another incident,
0:25:21 > 0:25:25so we looked at profiling people who were in the area.
0:25:25 > 0:25:29It can narrow it down to the sort of person who is capable of committing
0:25:29 > 0:25:31such abhorrent crimes.
0:25:31 > 0:25:34SIREN WAILS Officers work through the night,
0:25:34 > 0:25:37and quickly draw up a list of potential suspects.
0:25:37 > 0:25:40From that small pool of people, we did further analysis.
0:25:40 > 0:25:45We looked at their lifestyle, their previous convictions,
0:25:45 > 0:25:48and came up with one key suspect,
0:25:48 > 0:25:51and that person was Clinton Sentance.
0:25:51 > 0:25:54Sentance has committed crimes against the elderly before,
0:25:54 > 0:25:56but not with such violence.
0:25:56 > 0:26:00Local intelligence gathering the next day strengthens Mark's view
0:26:00 > 0:26:02that they're after the right man.
0:26:02 > 0:26:05We knew he was in the area at the relevant times,
0:26:05 > 0:26:08and we suspected he may be using drugs
0:26:08 > 0:26:12and was going through a particularly desperate time.
0:26:12 > 0:26:15Officers set off to flood the area and search for Sentance,
0:26:15 > 0:26:19but, on the way, they received the 999 call they'd been dreading -
0:26:19 > 0:26:23another elderly female victim has been threatened with a knife,
0:26:23 > 0:26:25gagged and robbed.
0:26:26 > 0:26:29This was our worst fear.
0:26:29 > 0:26:31It was exactly the same type of crime
0:26:31 > 0:26:34committed in exactly the same way.
0:26:34 > 0:26:36It's beyond terrifying.
0:26:36 > 0:26:39We are all very, very determined to get this individual into custody.
0:26:40 > 0:26:44Sentance has stolen £140 from his victim,
0:26:44 > 0:26:47so the officers head for the places he might go to buy drugs,
0:26:47 > 0:26:50and keep an eye on suspected dealers all around the area.
0:26:52 > 0:26:55Within hours, they get their man.
0:26:55 > 0:26:59They've come across him and he's been detained and arrested.
0:26:59 > 0:27:03Clinton Sentance's 24-hour reign of terror is over.
0:27:03 > 0:27:06Mark's team build such a compelling case against him
0:27:06 > 0:27:08that he decides to plead guilty.
0:27:08 > 0:27:11None of his victims will need to appear as witnesses.
0:27:14 > 0:27:16When his case reached court,
0:27:16 > 0:27:18he was sentenced to life imprisonment,
0:27:18 > 0:27:22with a minimum of ten years before he can be considered for parole.
0:27:26 > 0:27:28Mark and his officers are pleased he's been put away
0:27:28 > 0:27:30for such a long time.
0:27:31 > 0:27:34I think we all have thoughts and feelings about
0:27:34 > 0:27:35various different crimes,
0:27:35 > 0:27:39but what ranks right up there at the top is the targeting of
0:27:39 > 0:27:44vulnerable people, and I just hope that this life sentence
0:27:44 > 0:27:48gives the community some form of reassurance that they are now safe.
0:27:50 > 0:27:52In the weeks following the burglary,
0:27:52 > 0:27:55Joyce found it especially hard to come to terms with the crime.
0:27:55 > 0:27:58Mick had to persuade her to stay in Gainsborough.
0:27:58 > 0:28:03I was sort of blaming the area in a sense, you know,
0:28:03 > 0:28:06and as Mick said, "It's not. It's a one-off."
0:28:06 > 0:28:07She was a bit panicking.
0:28:07 > 0:28:11Well, she panics at the least thing, you know?
0:28:11 > 0:28:14But Mick and Joyce helped each other get over the ordeal,
0:28:14 > 0:28:17and now normal service has been resumed.
0:28:17 > 0:28:21I were, like, there for Mick cos he needed me, and he were there for me.
0:28:26 > 0:28:30That's it for today, and that's it for a few more criminals
0:28:30 > 0:28:31who have been caught red-handed.