Albert and Kath Adams, both 77, died after a gang set fire to a mobility scooter in their porch.Is it me, or are these stories all starting to look and sound the same?
The couple were trapped when the flames spread to their ground-floor flat in the early hours of Saturday.
Last night a neighbour in her 80s said Mr and Mrs Adams, both one-time champion bowls players, had previously confronted a 'rowdy' gang of drug-taking yobs who descended on the tranquil estate, shouting and playing loud music.And being met with a challenge to their yobbish behaviour was so unexpected, that what better way to regain face among their rat-featured fellow yobs than by a spot of arson.
'Kath and Albert were not the type of people to stand for it,' she said.
To cap their weeks-long reign of terror, unmolested by anything as prosaic as the law...
Police said they had received no complaints about anti-social behaviour in the months leading up to the deaths, but another neighbour said she and her husband had not reported the incidents to police.Oh, they might have. They might have arrested Albert or Kath...
She said: 'We just thought, "What's the point? They won't do anything".'
Naturally, a police spokeman is steered towards the media to give the now-obligatory 'Nuffink to do wiv us, mate!' statement:
Detective Chief Inspector James Essex, of Warwickshire Police, said: 'Although there has been speculation about the incident being linked to anti-social behaviour in the area, at this stage we have no evidence to substantiate that.Because they know that you are as useful as a chocolate fireguard, and three times as expensive.
'No calls have been made to us to report incidents of this nature and no members of the public have come forward to us to confirm this supposed link.'
7 comments:
One of the main things the police are targetted on is reported crime so they must be overjoyed by stories like this.
By their strategy of arresting or at best ignoring the victims when they report crime they have managed in this case to prevent any crimes being reported after weeks/months of rampage by this gang. The fact innocent people have died is neither here now there it seems.
Remember kids, a crime isn't a probelm, a reported crime is.
Hmmm - so setting fire to a mobility scooter isn't evidence of anti-social behaviour?
And the police wonder why public trust in them is so low.
....and nothing from any political party that will make the slightest difference over the next 5 years.
I do have (ahem) a teeny bit of sympathy for the Police here.
After 40-50 years of a non-stop Socialist assault on decency all public bodies inveitably reflect the resulting zeitgeist.
And as John R points out, it will take a decade or two to put it right - that's if anyone has the balls to start the correction process.
Lets not let the facts get in the way of a good rant about the police shall we?. This quote from the family seems to refute that they lived in a state of terror -"In a statement issued earlier, the couple's family said Kath and Albert had lived in a "lovely supportive environment" and if there had been any complaints of disruptive behaviour they would have known about it."
The information so far in the local paper and on the BBC web site does not seem to give the impression of a community under siege. I always find it best to wait a few days and see what develops. By the way I am an ex police officer and I am as dissatisfied as anyone else with the way policing has been damaged by the current government, but some of you out there must have voted for them at some time and must have had a fair idea of what you would be getting. FWIW I do not see the situation regarding anti-social behaviour getting better any time soon. Anyhow, I await the excuses that will be trotted out by the legal representative of the youth and let's not forget - he/she/it was the one who started the fire.
http://www.leamingtoncourier.co.uk/latest-west-midlands-news/Boy-15-held-over-couple39s.6117493.jp
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/coventry_warwickshire/8546451.stm
"One of the main things the police are targetted on is reported crime so they must be overjoyed by stories like this."
Indeed.
"Hmmm - so setting fire to a mobility scooter isn't evidence of anti-social behaviour?
And the police wonder why public trust in them is so low."
I'm not sure they do. I think they must know.
"....and nothing from any political party that will make the slightest difference over the next 5 years."
Nope, New Labour have painted everyone into a corner this time. We don't have enough jail space.
Although if they were to let out Nick Horgan to make space, it'd be a start...
"I do have (ahem) a teeny bit of sympathy for the Police here.
After 40-50 years of a non-stop Socialist assault on decency all public bodies inveitably reflect the resulting zeitgeist. "
Sadly true.
"Lets not let the facts get in the way of a good rant about the police shall we?"
This isn't a good rant against the police. I'm not even getting started yet, until the trial...
"The information so far in the local paper and on the BBC web site does not seem to give the impression of a community under siege."
So, then, those neighbours who reported to the 'Mail' that they had regular yob gatherings which they didn't bother reporting because there'd be nothing done?
It doesn't happen unless it's on the BBC or your local paper?
"By the way I am an ex police officer and I am as dissatisfied as anyone else with the way policing has been damaged by the current government, but some of you out there must have voted for them at some time and must have had a fair idea of what you would be getting."
I never voted for them, precisely because I COULD see what we'd be getting!
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