Please help -vandalism- advice needed

willis

Evening everyone,
Could you please give me some advice?
I've sold my house (subject to contract), offered on another and am several weeks into the process.
However, for the last few weeks my house has been targeted by children knocking the door then running away, and destroying part of my garden fence. This had never happened before, but is now happening every single day. It's really horrible and makes me feel uncomfortable.

I've seen them and it's a small group of young boys (around 12 years old)
I've spoken to the police, but not actually reported it. I really don't know what to do. Should I report it? Or just put up with it until I move? I'm worried that if I draw attention to it (police car etc), my buyers might see it and pull out of the sale.

I have no clue who the boys are, and have never had a disagreement with anyone in the area. We're ignoring it for now (not answering door etc), but it's getting to me and I just don't know what to do.

Even with the move aside, I am worried about contacting the police incase the boys take revenge. I know what I'd like to do to them, but I'd get locked up for it!

Any advice very welcome.

Thanks

dekh

Report it and make sure you get a crime number.

Keep reporting new incidents and get a crime number each time.

Eventually the police will do something about it because it's screwing up their figures.

These things may peter out on their own, but they could spiral if not stopped.

It's not such a fine line between hi-jinx and criminal damage.

My father in-law phoned the police when kids were trying to knock down his garden wall. The Kent police turned up 2 days later. It was only when other neighbours were encouraged to report similar act of vandalism that the brave boys in blue started patroling again.

Oh lord sorry, I sound like such an old grump.

I hope it sorts out and you move before it gets bad.

merlinthehappypig

It's a really hard one and, having been in a similar situation (only with older teenagers), I can sympathise.

With us the police were no help at all. They made the right noises, but when it came to it they couldn't or wouldn't do anything. The kids knew that and reporting them only made things worse.

Sadly, with society like it is you are the one most likely to be punished if you try to stop it yourself. The police won't help and, in our case, the neighbours didn't want to know in case they got on the receiving end of it.

In the end we decided that the only option was to sell up and go elsewhere. It really was that bad. I can honestly say that the night after we exchanged was the first decent night's sleep that we had both had in months.

You are already part way to exchanging contracts so personally I would leave it well alone.

No doubt some people will tell you that is running away, but unless you have been in that situation you have no idea what it is like.

willis

Thanks for the advice dekh and merlinthehappypig.

Opinions from anyone else welcome.

PasturesNew

My parents had a problem in 1999. Teens from the Youth Centre started stoning their house on the way home from the youth centre. It was always the same time of night. The police were aware, but did nothing.

Then the teenagers smashed my parents' full front bay window. The police came, late, and said to keep reporting it and they'd come out but there was nothing they could do without catching them at it. My dad pointed out that it was exactly the same time every night.

I was furious. My parents were doddery OAPs, confused as to why this was happening. It consumed their every waking hour. So I went out and bought a videocamera. I hid in an upstairs room dressed in black, camera covered in black. Dad waited downstairs with his hand on the security light switch.... I saw them coming, started videoing.

The plan was that I'd shout "NOW" and he'd flick on the security light.

Gotcha! My video showed them approaching, going across the road for stones from the driveway, raising them up... ON went the light. And there they were 3 full frontals, floodlit in all their glory.

Called the police. Replayed the video. The police took the video, they knew who it was obviously and it never happened again.

So, why did they do it? Always the question..... there was an alcoholic woman at the corner house, a man-hater. She'd go round inventing rumours about and bad mouthing any man at all. She'd been a carer to my parents' sick neighbour and one day had even said to me as I stood in my garden "can't you feel him watching you? he's watching you you know". She was weird.... anyway, she had told her son that my father was a !!!!!!, so he'd gone down the youth centre and spread the lies. So that turned into a vigilante type group.

All's well that ends well. 5 years on and the son ended up in prison for almost killing a complete stranger. And the woman died unexpectedly and early of something horrible due to her alcoholism.

So, if you can, video it/floodlight it. The police like tapes.

clutton_2

i would grin and bear it and not report it otherwise the new vendor may have a claim against you afterwards - you are already stressed due to house moving, try not to make things worse - bw

pinkshoes

Boobytrap the front door somehow. (and don't forget to tell all friends and family to use the back door!)

Trip wire and a bucket of water?

A fake door bell that doesn't ring? (and forget to earth it so it gives a small electric shock!)

A sign saying the door has been painted?

Paint the fence in that sticky anti burglar paint?

Set up a web cam to film them? (Then show evidence to police if you get a clear image)

Sit outside your house on a deckchair and read a book, armed with water bombs just incase...

Ask them to go and knock on someone elses front door instead.

Ideally I'd grab one of them by the scruff of the neck and take them home, and explain to their parents what they've been up to, but apparently we're not allowed to do that any more.

Borrow a fierce looking dog, buy a big chain, and chain it up next to the front door.

Sorry, most of those suggestions are a bit silly, but I know how frustrating it is having kids do things like this! At our last flat, kids continually rang the intercom button and ran away. I hope you exchange contracts soon!!

willis

Does anyone know if there are any rules that I must report it to the people moving in? Or, if report it to the police, is this something their solicitor could find out about? I want to move asap because of all of this.

merlinthehappypig

Unless things have changed (and this was 10 years ago for us) we only had to report neighbour disputes according to the solicitor. These kids were from out of the village so didn't qualify as neighbours.

We felt guilty about not telling the new people but guessed, rightly, that the kids would leave them alone. The reason we had so many problems was that we had tried to stop it by reporting them to the police.

Apparently they switched their attentions to one of the un-supportive neighbours after we left........

elvis_girl

I think you only have to tell the people who are moving in if you've made an official complaint (ie to the police). I think I'd be saying nowt & trying to exchange ASAP!

neilmusgrove

elvis_girl wrote: »

I think you only have to tell the people who are moving in if you've made an official complaint (ie to the police). I think I'd be saying nowt & trying to exchange ASAP!

I think that stuff only applies to neighbours