Wednesday, May 13, 2009

Pensioner is left devastated by theft of windmill

Thieves left a Paston pensioner heartbroken after stealing a model windmill, which was his pride and joy, from his garden.
The 3ft tall windmill, which had stood in the corner of Paynesholm, Paston, Peterborough for several years, had been lovingly crafted by Ted Norman and was an eye-catching feature that delighted residents. Mr Norman (68), who is a carer for his wife, Joyce, was in the middle of repainting it when the theft happened.
The grandfather has now removed all the plant pots from his neat plot for fear of criminals striking again. The retired lorry driver and landscape gardener said: "I was quite shocked. It was red and white and I had painted the top half blue and white and wanted to finish the bottom half so went to get more paint. "I put the bins out as usual on Saturday morning and the windmill was gone. "They had ripped it off the base." Mr Norman has reported the theft to police but is not hopeful of ever seeing his prized windmill again. Neighbour Joan Penman (68) said she was furious that anyone would target an elderly man with a disabled wife. She said: "How could someone steal an elderly man's windmill in his front garden, where it has sat for longer than seven years? "He has now stripped his front garden. He was very proud of the garden but he has taken all the plant pots in." She added: "Why can't these people leave anything alone? It's obvious to everyone that these terraced bungalows are for the elderly and infirm. "We are living in an age where people have been brought up not to respect other people." The incident happened overnight between Friday and Saturday. If you have any information, call police on 0845 4564564, or Crimestoppers, anonymously, on 0800 555111.

(Reproduced from the Peterborough Evening Telegraph, 12th May)

GARDIEN TIP: Sadly, nothing is sacred and you have to consider the security of anything movable placed in your garden. See our advice at http://www.garden-security.co.uk/garden-crime-prevention.aspx

No comments: