Dave and Dee Crime Scene Rescue

SIREN WAILS

In the UK, there's a burglary every 45 seconds.

But right across the country

dedicated police teams are on the offensive,

waging war against the criminals who steal from local homeowners.

Police!

Come and open the door otherwise entry's going to have to be forced.

For the victims of these crimes it can take months,

even years to come to terms with what's happened.

And she'd had it years and years and years.

But in this series we're about to show them and you

how we can all beat the burglars.

This is Crime Scene Rescue.

Coming up, we meet Dave and Dee and their two young children,

six-year-old Charlie and three-year-old Poppy,

a family whose home is at the heart of their lives.

Dee and the kids just mean everything to me, you know.

They're fantastic, you know. They make my world.

But it's all literally been turned upside down after being burgled,

and the children have been left traumatised.

And she was visibly shaking as well when she saw... It was when

she saw the window and everything there so, she was upset, yeah.

She was very upset.

So whilst the police try to catch the criminals, I take on

the massive challenge of making their house a safe and secure home.

It feels like you've got your family space back again.

-Oh, wow!

-Fantastic. Wow! That's amazing.

West Yorkshire is policed by around 5,000 officers,

busy battling against crime.

It's 7.45pm and a break-in has just been reported.

A police response team has been immediately despatched

to a property a few miles from Leeds city centre,

where a family has returned home to discover they have been burgled.

Hello, David.

PC Graham Lawton is first on the scene.

-I'm angry and annoyed.

-Yeah?

Very angry.

And the fact that they've so brazenly done it as well,

by smashing a window like that.

It doesn't matter what lock you've got in your door, does it?

They're desperate to get in, aren't they?

They've took the iPads and the laptops and the kids' DS,

that kind of thing, and then they've gone upstairs to our bedroom

and they've gone through the top drawers,

riffled through there to see.

They've looked in the jewellery boxes and things.

I feel a bit sick. I feel it in my tummy.

I don't know if that's... Yeah, anger and...

I'm very angry and, you know,

to be fair, it's not the first time this has happened as well,

-so it leaves you feeling a bit vulnerable, to be fair.

-Vulnerable, yeah.

They've tried before to get in,

where they've broken a lock on the door,

that was probably about six months or so ago,

and then they've come back and they've obviously got in this time,

but they've just used brute force.

The thing that unnerves me the most is the fact that

the last time it happened we had literally gone out

and we were only out 45 minutes.

And then this time Dave's gone out to pick me up,

and so obviously we're being watched.

Whilst the family come to terms with what's happened,

PC Lawton is wasting no time and is conducting door-to-door enquiries,

and he's already beginning to piece together what's happened.

It appears that the offenders have come into the back garden,

forced an entry to the garage.

-They just got in that top corner, yeah?

-Yeah.

Is anything you can see that's missing

that they might have used...?

-They've had a go at them drawers there.

-Yeah.

And then come back to the rear patio doors.

A blunt instrument has cracked the glass.

-They've took our son's Nintendo.

-Christmas present.

A Christmas present, so he was really upset

when he's heard about that. He's been in tears about that.

The first thing he said was, "Have they taken my teddy?"

He just sobbed and was heartbroken, "But Santa got me that."

And Poppy said, "Have they been in my dolls' house?"

She's very upset, wasn't she?

Yeah, she said she felt really sad. She went, "I feel sad, Mummy."

She was visibly shaken as well.

And they've took some of your jewellery, took one of your rings.

-You got for when you graduated.

-Yeah. Graduation.

I suppose the things like the iPad and the DS we can replace,

but that had sentimental value that so...

It's getting late, and the most important thing now

is to secure the property for the night.

Thankfully, Dave and Dee's friend Keith

has rushed round to help them out.

DRILLING

It's the crack of dawn, and I'm keen to get things moving to help

the family put the burglary behind them.

But first, Scenes of Crime Officer Graham Bottomley

needs to comb Dave and Dee's house for any forensic evidence.

He's hunting for blood, fingerprints, footprints and DNA.

So they've put like a screwdriver in there or something

and then popped it and then the glass has gone,

and there was just a...like, just a nice entrance door there

-so they could get in.

-Just a nice doorway just to get in.

-And the rest is just all smashed above there.

-Just in and out.

If he can secure forensic evidence from the scene,

this will give the police a 20% greater chance of catching the thief.

We've got glove marks pulling this down.

You've got a similar kind of mark on your window outside.

Right, OK.

It's just a big game, really, we just carry on chasing them.

If they're in the habit of smashing glass they might cut themselves,

they might leave us other things,

we might get footwear from another scene,

and we'll just keep building up a picture of these burglars,

because they'll do more than this one, obviously.

They'll do quite a few.

I'm keen to turn this hideous situation around.

I want to firm up the security

and put the heart back into this family's home.

So I've come to meet them.

So, Dee and Dave, the first thing I've got to ask is,

is how are you doing at the moment after what happened?

Well, really, the kids have been a bit upset about everything

that's gone on, you know.

Poppy's not slept so well, she's been coming into our bed at night.

We've had to keep the curtains closed,

certainly the one where the window's been smashed, to cover over them

-so it doesn't remind them.

-They don't like seeing that.

Charlie, this is your room where you used to play, isn't it?

How do you feel about it?

Obviously, quite upset because, you know...

Because his DS.

Because my DS went.

And that was your little games console that they stole.

Yeah. All of the games except one.

Other items that were gone, are they irreplaceable, then?

Let's take your iPad,

I imagine there's a lot of photos on there.

Yeah. All the photos from last Christmas, really.

We hadn't backed them up because it's not that long ago.

For longer.

The memories from that morning, which was brilliant, wasn't it?

Because you were so happy when you got your present, weren't you?

They've obviously gone now.

And in addition there was something else that was stolen

which is of massive sentimental value.

My graduation ring. It was a white gold ring with some diamonds on it.

I could get another ring but it's not...

-It's not going to be the same, is it?

-No.

No, it's not. That's right, Charlie, it's not the same.

I know that security was something that you were conscious of.

We already knew we needed to get a gate and the alarm wasn't working.

I suppose it was things like that we knew we had to do

but we just kept putting it off.

I really think that's something we might be able to help you with.

-So, Charlie, shall we fix your place up, make it nice and safe?

-Yes.

Come on then, give me a big high five.

Are you ready?

Oh!

Whilst the police pursue the burglars

and try to get back the stolen items,

I'm determined to sort out the weak security measures at the family's home.

Also, I really want to restore their peace of mind by transforming

their ransacked living room.

So I'm returning to the police headquarters to assemble

a group of willing volunteers to overhaul Dave and Dee's home.

Charlotte, it's Rav. Hi, is that Chris?

John, hi, it's Rav. Darren, it's Rav, how are you doing?

Charlotte, I really need a favour.

'OK.'

We've just had a lovely couple that we've found have been burgled

and it's really, really shaken them up.

and one of their biggest weakness

on the house that they've got, is the windows.

'Your patio's going to be the weakest point of your property.'

I think that's where you could come in and help us out.

-'Definitely, I'd love to.'

-Brilliant.

-'Yeah, we'll be happy to help.'

-Thank you so much for your help.

I'll send you the details, and see you at the property.

-'I'll look forward to seeing you. Take care, Rav.'

-And you. Bye-bye.

My army of volunteers is really shaping up, and I know with

their help we can definitely make a difference to Dave and Dee's lives.

It's early afternoon, and back at their house I'm eager to keep up

the momentum of the security transformation.

It only takes an intruder minutes to burgle your house, but with the

right security measures in place, you could stop them completely.

So I need to get a full security assessment.

'PC Paul Croft is here to give us his professional opinion.'

Paul, thanks for coming down.

Obviously this is the property that's just been burgled.

What are you thinking?

It's got an alarm. It looks fairly dated.

It's not working.

If you're looking at an alarm box

and think it looks outdated and not working,

a burglar could do the same.

The offender will be doing exactly the same thing, yes.

-So straightaway that needs to be looked at.

-Yeah.

Now we can see some lighting there which is a good sign.

I'm not sure if it's actually working.

If you've got it, you need to maintain it so that it's effective

and does the job that it was designed and put up to do.

We could just walk straight through to the back there so,

what do you think about that?

The majority of burglaries are round the back of the houses

because people can't see there.

And a gate on there with a padlock would be making it more difficult

for the offenders to get round the back, and so limiting their options.

-It's that deterrent we want to get across, isn't it?

-It is.

Deter them from going through

-the back of someone else's home.

-That's right, yes.

Let's go and take a look now and see what's there.

This is where they did eventually get in,

they smashed through this patio door.

Now this isn't the worst patio door you can get security-wise, is it?

No, it's not.

It's an aluminium door,

they are generally better than the UPVC in terms of strength,

and I think the fact they've put the glass through,

is looking at desperation, really.

OK, Paul.

Well, lots of tips there, lots for us to be getting on with.

Better get our skates on. Cheers, mate.

My mission is to get this security fix sorted,

and my band of willing volunteers is already on the case.

I'm replacing the defunct lights and alarm,

so the family can start to relax in their home again.

Darren and his colleague are on the case.

I'm also putting in a gate, as one of the biggest problems here

is the easy access to the back garden.

There's a ton of stuff for the guys to be getting on with,

but it's not just about making the house secure.

I want to make it feel like home, a place where Poppy and Charlie

can feel safe and comfortable again.

So I've called in designer Charlotte Brewer to help.

Charlotte, thanks for coming up.

This is the family room that Dave and Dee share with their children,

and this is the one that was broken into by the burglars.

They smashed that patio door, the glass was all over the kids' toys.

They even stole one of Charlie's Christmas presents,

and it was completely ransacked.

So, we want to make this feel as calm and as nice

as we possibly can after what happened,

and that's where you come in.

So, you've had a look around, what do you think you can do?

I think understandably there's quite a few bits and pieces

in this room that David and Dee want to keep, which is great.

It's just a case of really kind of accessorising what we've already got

and kind of making additions instead of making any major changes.

The sofas, for example, we're going to have them cleaned,

have new inners put in the cushions so they'll feel like new,

and then bring in some more vivid colours on the cushions to try

and brighten up the space and make it more comfortable for them again.

The security upgrade at Dave and Dee's home is coming on a pace,

and the police investigation is moving forward too.

They're out in the community again, going house-to-house

looking for leads and offering support.

You've all got your areas. Is there any questions from anybody?

Right, lovely. Right, we'll get cracking, then.

We're here this morning to basically visit all the surrounding properties

and reassure them, basically.

We tend to find that a lot of neighbours

tend not to communicate very much any more.

It can be quite scary for them

to find that one of the houses next to them might have been burgled.

It just offers them reassurance and makes them

think about their own security a little bit more.

The thing is that they've got through the window

so it's been smashed, so probably a bit of a noise has been made

at that time, so I don't know if you've heard or seen anything?

-Was it local? Whereabouts was it?

-It's just opposite.

-Really?

-Yeah. Yeah.

-Right.

-On the main road, yeah.

No, nothing.

The police have finished their door-to-door investigations

and, as rush hour begins, back at the house my team have finished

installing the new alarm and lights.

There's just one more thing to finish off before we call it a night.

Sorted.

The crime committed at Dave and Dee's house is still under investigation,

and Chris Craven has potential leads to follow up.

At this moment in time, the computers and the electrical items that have

been stolen haven't come online, however this doesn't mean that say

in three or four months time that they're not going to come online.

Those enquiries will still keep going.

And also we can't establish at this moment in time

when someone take these stolen items of jewellery into a gold shop,

because it's such an easily identifiable article,

and it may be that in two or three months we'll receive a phone call

from one of the gold shops

to say that they have offered this ring for sale.

It's a sunny Friday morning in West Yorkshire.

Dave and Dee are getting ready to leave so we can really crack on

with the transformation of their home.

After everything that's happened, I think it's reassuring to know

that things are going to be happening to the house

that will make it more secure.

And hopefully reduce the chances of anything happening again.

My calls have really paid off.

I've spread word of the break-in far and wide,

and an army of good Samaritans are arriving

to help get this family's life back on track.

OK, folks, thanks for coming round at such short notice.

This is Dee and Dave's home which they share

with their two children, Charlie and Poppy.

Some of you know them personally, many of you don't,

but what they've had happen to them is that someone has smashed

their way in through their patio door, completely obliterated their

family room and have really, really upset them by ransacking their home.

Now, for me the worst part is how it's affected the young children.

I want to change that with your help, let's make it as safe

and secure as we possibly can.

So let's get in there and let's get this place fixed up.

ALL: Yeah. Let's do it!

To achieve my goal we need to fix the garage roof,

install new windows, replace the smashed patio door,

and turn the living room back into a comfortable family space.

It's massively important that we banish the bad memories

of the burglary, so they can feel safe in their home again.

These timber windows, have not got very good locking systems on them

so we're going to increase the security of them,

fit doubled glazed units with a six point locking system,

to ensure that this doesn't happen again.

And we're also going to be replacing the patio with a French door

combination with a ten point locking mechanism, with also security film

as well, to stop them from punching through the glass.

So it's going to be a lot more warmer and a lot more secure.

There's real motivation amongst the community to help Dave and Dee,

especially as other people know exactly what they are going through.

When my young one were about three months old,

me and my girlfriend got broke into and it were a bit, you know,

a bit heartbreaking, a bit emotional.

We were asleep upstairs and I got up the next morning for work

and the house had been turned over.

I know what it's like, it's horrible.

The security measures are really taking shape,

so too are Charlotte's plans for the family room.

So, Charlotte, you won't mind me saying there's still an awful

lot of work that still needs to be done here, and it must be difficult

for you working with all the guys doing this as well at the same time.

You've kind of got to work around each other.

Yeah. They're doing a great job putting the doors in.

When they're done, we'll start moving the furniture back into place.

We've got some pictures going up, cushions on the sofas,

a nice big rug, that's also coming in.

-The sofas look great, by the way.

-They're going to look brilliant.

They love this sofa, but they wanted it plumped up.

Yes, we've had it cleaned, had it plumped up

so it should be like new for them.

And the addition of the cushions

to bring the whole colour scheme together.

MACHINE GRINDS

It's coming to the end of a long and productive day

at Dave and Dee's house.

Whilst we've been working hard, the police have also been doing

all they can to capture the criminals.

Unfortunately, the investigation has come to a dead end,

but the hunt is never over for the police.

Dave and Dee's burglary

unfortunately wasn't unique in that area.

They've broken into garage first and removed the roof from it,

and we've had a number of offences

that have occurred in exactly the same way.

Those offences have forensic potential

and they have witnesses which are leading us to suspects.

So what we'll do then is go back and revisit Dave and Dee's burglary,

look at that in line with the suspects we've got.

There may be other evidence that comes to light, whether it be

the electrical items or the jewellery that's been taken,

we'll continue to bear that in mind

while we're searching suspects' addresses.

It's bright and early on our final day,

and my selfless team of volunteers are working flat out, making sure

everything is perfect for Dave and Dee's return.

John, the glazier, and Darren, the alarm fitter,

have joined forces to come up with an ingenious idea.

It's a tiny gadget which will hugely improve

the security on the patio doors

So, Darren, your alarm system's almost complete now,

tell me what you've done here with the patio doors.

We've worked with John, who put the patio doors in,

and we've managed to get the cable all the way up the frame,

so we've got the vibration sensor here which is a nice neat finish.

You say the vibration sensor,

now that doesn't actually need the glass to smash, does it?

If an intruder was to come up and give this door a whack,

that is enough to set the alarm off.

Yeah. Any sort of attempted break-in on this is going to trip that

vibration sensor and it's going to go straight off.

-OK. Now you've armed this now. The alarm is on.

-It is.

I'm just going to test it to make sure that this does actually work.

-So if I give this a whack it should set the alarm off?

-Go for it.

ALARM GOES OFF

Fantastic. You'd better turn it off now!

The work on Dave and Dee's home is almost complete.

Their friends know all too well how much the team's efforts will

help them move on, so they've come round to add their support.

-Charlotte, I've got here Oliver and Luke.

-Hiya.

They're going to help you out.

Now, guys, Charlotte here is helping make Charlie

and Poppy's house nice, and she needs some help with the flowers.

So are you going to give her a hand?

We've got the parents here. Gemma, these are your boys.

And Mikey and Laura, come over a moment.

-You guys all know Dee and Dave.

-Yeah.

So between you, you all know how much it's affected them.

We had Charlie the night that it happened.

He was upset, he was definitely a lot quieter than normal,

a lot quieter.

-Which is completely understandable, isn't it?

-Yeah.

When something horrendous like this happens.

It's helped knowing that you've come round to give them

a hand with the house,

and that they're going to be more secure.

-They're pretty strong people, aren't they, really?

-Yeah.

And I think the excitement of having this is good for them.

It's nice to know that they've got friends and,

even little ones that are willing to give them a hand.

-Definitely.

-And sort it out again.

Dave and Dee's home has been transformed,

but before we reveal it to them I want to find out

what our Crime Reduction Specialist, PC Paul Croft,

thinks of the new security measures.

We've replaced Dave and Dee's alarm

and lights, adding dusk till dawn sensors all around the property.

We've also put a brand new gate in, and installed a high quality

patio door with a state of the art vibration sensor.

But how does Paul rate it?

Do you think after your original assessment of the property,

this is now safer and more secure than it was?

A lot more safe, yeah. It's been a really good job has this one,

and it's made the house a lot more secure.

That's what we want. Brilliant, thank you.

-I'm sure the family will be very happy to hear that.

-I'm sure they will.

Dave and Dee's family life was left in turmoil

when an intruder broke into their home, ransacking it

and making it feel a scary and frightening place

for their two young children, Charlie and Poppy.

While the police have been on the trail of the burglars,

my army of volunteers have turned this home into a safe haven

once again, where the family can be at ease.

But what will Dave and Dee make of their revamped home?

They're back to take a look.

Let's show you what we've done on the front of your property.

First of all you can see a new burglar alarm box.

-We've put an intruder alarm in, so peace of mind for you there.

-Brilliant.

Also you can notice there's a light on the front, just in the porch.

Yeah, yeah.

That's what they refer to as a dusk till dawn type light.

So every time it goes dark, that's automatically going to go on

and just illuminate this area nice and gently, and also there's

another light on the side of the property, exactly the same.

And you can also see just down the side - a brand new gate.

That's brilliant.

Some improvements there straightaway.

-Let's go round the back because I want to show you some more.

-OK.

-Excellent.

OK, guys, obviously

if you look above there, you've got a new light as well.

Brilliant.

And that's again dusk till dawn style.

Now if you just shuffle over here.

Wow!

-Brand new patio doors.

-Look at that! Fantastic.

-OK? Now those doors...

-They look amazing.

..are as safe as we can possibly get. They're laminated glass.

If anything was ever to be smashed against the glass,

it's not going to shatter like before.

And all that glass going over your board games

and all over your living room. None of that any more.

And they're linked up to a vibration sensor, so even

a big whack on the door when the alarm's set is enough to set it off.

-Brilliant.

-They look amazing.

Good. I thought you'd like those.

Thank you very much.

You can see actually the curtains are drawn,

-so you're probably wondering what's the other side of the curtains.

-Yeah.

Well, as a little extra,

we wanted to give you your family room back again.

-We've done a bit of work inside that I want to show you.

-Wow!

-Do you want to take a look?

-Yes, please.

-Let's go in and have a look.

-Definitely!

So if you come in.

And this is just a little extra that we wanted to do for you,

so it feels like you've got your family space back again.

-Wow!

-Fantastic! That's amazing.

-And all your pictures up there.

-Look at that!

Now, Dave, you won't mind me saying this I'm sure,

-but you were very fond of this sofa.

-Yeah.

Now what we've done is actually steam-cleaned the sofa

and filled it again, so it's had a brand new filling

so it's nice and plump, so you can laze around in that, I'm sure.

And have lots of fun there.

-Thank you very much.

-Lovely.

And lots of storage for you, lots of colour

and a little area in the corner.

-I love the rug, that's brilliant, and the pictures.

-That's brilliant.

But what we wanted to do was just try and give you that feeling

that this is your space again,

and then we'd try and get rid of the memories of what happened in here.

-Yeah.

-Thank you very much. It's great.

-Yeah.

Do you think Charlie and Poppy will like it, though?

I think they will, yeah. I think they will.

I think they'll like that area there,

-where they can do their own little drawing and bits and pieces.

-They will do, yeah.

Good boy, Charlie. Are you going to come in?

Charlie, look at what we've done to your living room.

Cool!

Do you like it?

You've moved the chair.

THEY LAUGH

-Look what you've got in the corner.

-It's a table.

-Go and have a look, Charlie?

-Do you want to go across?

Go and have a look, that's for you.

Go on, Poppy, are you going to have a look too?

You can go and sit down, that's for you

I want to go outside.

THEY LAUGH

What about the doors? Do you like the new doors?

Yes.

I think we're getting a thumbs up from them two.

-I think so.

-Do you like it, then?

BOTH: Yeah.

-Does it look better?

-Yeah.

There's obviously a lot of people that made this happen,

there was a massive team effort.

They're all local tradesmen and women,

they heard your story and they just wanted to help.

And they're outside.

So would you like to say a quick hello?

Yeah, definitely. And a thank you as well.

And a big thank you.

So come on out.

That's it, Charlie, come up here, come with Daddy. And Dee.

-There's a few friendly faces you can see there that you know.

-Yeah.

John and Darren did the alarm and the window.

-Brilliant. Thank you very much

-Fantastic.

-The locksmith. You've got everyone there.

-Yeah. Right.

And where is he?

Dave, there's a face you might recognise over there as well.

-Can you see him?

-Yeah.

Feel free to go over and say hello.

Let's go and say thank you to everyone.

-We feel a lot more safer now, don't we?

-Yeah.

Yeah? Definitely.

And nobody's going to get through those doors anymore, are they?

No. Not at all.

Look at that reaction.

And I'm never going to get tired of seeing this.

All these local tradesmen and women rushing round to help

a family who so desperately needed them.

And I think this is a big step in turning this house

into their home, once again.

The look of the living room is fantastic. No, it's brilliant,

I absolutely love it.

I'm really pleased.

Every cloud has a silver lining.

Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd