Urban explorer video spawns copycat break-ins at country estate

William Reeve owner of Leadenham House and estate, says there has been a “dangerous escalation” of previous posts on Tik Tok and Facebook by people claiming to be exploring derelict and abandoned historic buildings and sites which he says were locked and awaiting renovation.

He says others inspired by the initial self-proclaimed ‘urban explorers’ have broken into empty cottages belonging to the estate awaiting refurbishment in Church End, during the evening of Saturday October 17.

He said perhaps half a dozen masked youths were seen around the village.

William said: "A resident of Church End called the police as they were disturbed in the middle of the night by at least five men wielding torches and making their way around the cottages. The police attended and found that they had broken the lock to access one of the cottages.”

More than just trespassing, he said they broke into at least three properties, including a cottage, the workshop in the woodyard, and the 126-year-old front gates of Leadenham House.

He said: “They then broke into Leadenham House (his home) and went through the ground and first floors, opening drawers scattering our possessions around and leaving front and side doors open, while we were asleep. There was a light on in the hall along with other clear indications of use that this was a lived-in property. We are still assessing what is missing, but needless to say, feel both utterly violated and concerned about what further escalation may follow.”

Lincolnshire Police said in a statement they have had three incidents reported in the area since October 11.

They said officers were called on Sunday October 11 just before 8.35pm to a report of a break in at a property being renovated at Church End in Leadenham.

A door was damaged to gain entry. They said: “There is insufficient evidence to identify those responsible.

“We have shared crime prevention advice to assist in securing the buildings and the use of CCTV.”

They added that footage of the area by Urban Explorers appeared on social media on October 7 and there are concerns that other content creators are trying to record footage about the buildings and the area.

"We do not have powers to force social media platforms to remove this footage,” said the spokesperson, but they had advised for affected individuals to report the matter to Tik Tok directly.

There was a second call on Sunday October 18 just before 3.30am. Five people were spotted going in and out of one empty property and running away from another occupied property.

A local resident had a torch shone in their face by a group who then ran off. No one was located by a police search.

Then just before 4.50pm the same day they received a report of burglary at a property on Rectory Lane in Leadenham.

They said: “The caller reported at around 2am four intruders had gained entry to the house overnight whilst residents were asleep.

“An untidy search was made and damage caused to antique furniture, gates and a padlock. An adjacent workshop has been also broken into.

“We would ask everyone to be vigilant in Leadenham and report any suspicious behaviour, people or vehicles to us on 101 or 999 in an emergency.”