The great Blaen y Cwm Robbery

Imagine it, waking in the night you realise that the lights you turned off earlier are now shining under the bedroom door. Stopping only to cover his decency with a pair of joggers one intrepid Blaen y Cwm resident stepped tentatively downstairs to investigate.

Oh No! Downstairs all the lights were blazing, door were flung open and the front door was ajar.
As a still recent migrant our hero loved Cwm’s absence of burglaries and he felt the urban life he had left returning. His only consolation was that even though a lap top and wallet were visible they had not been taken.
He locked the front door, switched off everything and retired to a frightened and sleepless night hoping that the intruders hadn’t gone for reinforcements and wondering how he would repel them if they returned.

It all got easier in the morning, neighbours had been undisturbed and with support he rang the police. He was amazed to get a real person quickly answering who took details with sympathy and patience...
”so the front door was unlocked? ...and the lap top was visible?
..you didn’t hear anything?”.
By the end of the call she was able to report that a patrol was on its way and a forensic team would follow.
The first officer arrived and checked the story whilst looking round the property.
Then he set off to speak to neighbours and look round the village for any clues.
This was real police work. While he was away the forensic officer arrived and was, again a model of care and sympathy.

Almost simultaneously a smart Mercedes car drove up our narrow lane.
Looking slightly horrified at the police presence, they asked for the owner of the house.
Yes, it was me I admitted.
They had come to apologise profusely for having come into my house at 1am.

Google maps had brought them to my door as they ended their journey from London.
They had indeed set it for number 6 but it was for another terrace, not Blaen y Cwm.

They had found the door unlocked and walked in.

They thought they had found a gem with a bottle of wine open on the side and the remains of a fire in the grate.
Apparently the laptop began to arouse their fears.
“Oh no! we’ve walked into someone’s house” they realised before fleeing in such haste that nothing got turned off or shut.
They were decent people, they took nothing, came to apologise and couldn’t have been nicer.

I Iearned two things.
Firstly that the North Wales Police are great (and their clear up rate for burglaries in Cwm is now 100%).
Secondly, that it is pleasing not to have to lock up at night but it isn’t always advisable!

Mike Wolfe