St Agnes police warning after three Kemp Close break-ins

You check the back door before bed without really thinking about it. For homes around Kemp Close in St Agnes, that small habit has suddenly become the difference between a normal night and a break-in.

Three burglaries in two weeks

Police have received three reports of burglaries at homes in the Kemp Close area over the past two weeks, the most recent overnight on Wednesday 16 September. In each case, the thief got in through an open window, and cash and personal items were taken.

There is no suggestion of forced entry or a break-in in the traditional sense. Every one of the three homes had a window left open, and that was enough.

What to check tonight

The advice from the police is straightforward, if easy to let slip on a mild evening. Before bed, and any time a house is left empty, doors and windows need to be properly closed and locked, not just pulled to. That includes small upstairs or bathroom windows that get left ajar for air, which is exactly the kind of gap an opportunist thief will use.

Anyone in the Kemp Close area with home CCTV is also being asked to go back through their footage and check for anything suspicious, whether that is an unfamiliar face on the street or someone lingering near a property that does not fit the usual pattern.

How to report it

Devon and Cornwall Police has set out three separate routes, depending on what you have seen.

If something suspicious is happening right now, in the moment, that is a 999 call. For information that might help the investigation into these three burglaries, including anything caught on a home camera, contact the force on 101 or via their website, quoting the reference 50260249215.

Information can also be passed on anonymously through Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111, for anyone who would rather not give their name.

Look out for each other

St Agnes Parish Council shared the warning on behalf of police, with a simple ask alongside it. Take a moment to check your own home is secure, and keep an eye out for your neighbours’ as well. Three break-ins in a fortnight is a short run, but it only takes one open window to make it four.