Frugal Café Blog Zone

Posted By Vicki McClure Davidson on February 11, 2010

Burglar or cop? If you live in the UK, and someone tries to break into your home at night, you just won't know for sure

In Macclesfield, Cheshire in the UK, police will be going through neighborhoods, acting like burglars in the dead of night to see if residents are locking their doors and windows to prevent break-ins. And if a door or window is unlatched, they will wake up the residents to scold them. It’s part of their “Operation Golden” initiative.

Good grief. You can file this in the “Really Bad Idea” file for government idiocy on the edge of lunacy…

From Mail Online: Police who play burglar in the middle of the night:

A shadowy figure lurking in the garden in the early hours. A rattle on a window latch. It must be a burglar.

But don’t panic too soon and call the police. That could be them outside.

Officers have begun testing windows and doors at night as part of a campaign to increase home security.

If they find one open, they are under orders to knock on the door and drag sleepy residents from their beds and lecture them.

The move is part of an initiative called Operation Golden which aims to slash burglary rates in Macclesfield, Cheshire.

Police say their actions are necessary as almost 40 per cent of all burglars gain access through an unsecured window or door.

But some residents have condemned the plan, saying it could cause alarm and increase the fear of crime, especially among the elderly.

One 82-year-old resident, who did not want to be named, said: ‘If they’re not careful the police will end up arresting their own officers. It’s going to get very confusing for them. If I got a knock on my door at 1am I’d tell whoever was there where to get off and I wouldn’t be polite about it.’

Resident Adrian Dodd, 42, said: ‘I think it is preposterous. It is all well and good advising people but you can’t come trespassing on property in the dead of night and waking people up. Someone will have a heart attack.”

The operation should be restricted to daylight hours.’

Inspector Gareth Woods, who is heading the operation, said that it would be in effect from 4pm until 2am.

He admitted that some residents will not be happy about the wake-up call, but said: ‘If we’re told to get lost then that’s a risk we take.’

Not be happy? That’s the extent of the “risk” they anticipate from this? No mention of police or residents wondering if a resident could come after the incognito police officer with a brick or a cricket bat or grab a kitchen knife… anyone have an ax? Seems like an obvious oversight, naive and asinine. While UK citizens cannot legally own guns, there are plenty of household items that a person can use to smack down a fake burglar. Terrifying children and elderly people has obvious health risks. And I have no doubt that many British homes have a protective dog that will leap at the chance to “take a bite out of crime.” Crazy stuff here…

Seems to me the Gestapo also woke private citizens in the dead of night…

Categories: Government, Law & Constitution, Social and Political Climate
Tags: burglar, crime, England, fake burglar, Operation Golden, police, United Kingdom