Mystery of plant thefts

TEN large shrubs have mysteriously gone missing from a housing estate in Dagenham, little more than a week after a bamboo tree was stolen from a front garden. A 75-year-old resident of Ron Todd Close, who does not want to be named, said the three-foot shrubs were growing happily in the communal garden on Saturday July 25 but were nowhere to be seen the next day. A similar theft was reported in the POST two weeks ago. On the morning of July 14, keen gardeners Caroline and Peter Sims of Cornwallis Road, Dagenham, woke to discover that someone had taken their newly planted 4ft bamboo tree, which was worth £50. All that was left was a trail of soil, which could be followed along three streets before it disappeared. Speaking of the recent shrub theft, the Ron Todd Close resident said: "I thought it was strange that the shrubs just went missing like that. Then I read the piece in the paper about the tree thief and I figured someone must have stolen these plants too." It looks like there's a spate of it going on at the moment, which I find quite odd." The pensioner has reported the theft to the police and the housing trust that maintains the garden, Circle 33. A spokesman from Circle 33 said: "We are aware of the theft and are investigating it in conjunction with the police. There is a CCTV camera overlooking the shrubs, so the footage from the night in question will be checked."



(Reproduced from Barking and Dagenham Post, 13th August)



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