'˜Priceless' tools are stolen from joiner at Thorpe St Peter

A joiner from Thorpe St Peter, who moved to the area from Yorkshire to start a new business, says his plans have been wrecked after burglars stole his tools.
Burglars target a home in the countryside of Thorpe St Peter. ANL-170222-073859001Burglars target a home in the countryside of Thorpe St Peter. ANL-170222-073859001
Burglars target a home in the countryside of Thorpe St Peter. ANL-170222-073859001

Andrew Town said he was asleep when burglars went on to his property in Lymn Bank East some time during Saturday night and took the equipment he needs to work, including a chainsaw, power tools and a tool box containing items of sentimental value.

Mr Town, 45, said: “I feel absolutely gutted - especially as I’ll be out of work until the insurance pays out.

“You feel very violated to think someone has been on your property and done this while you were asleep.

“The outbuildings were all locked securely and the burglars must have come prepared as the lock was made of high security steel.The burglars must have been at it a while to get it off.”

The blow has made Mr Town question whether moving to Lincolnshire was a good idea. He said: “My wife and I chose Thorpe because statistics show it’s a low crime area. We moved here last June and have been renovating a house and are planning to open a campsite.

“But now we’re not so sure it was a good idea - my wife is very upset about it.

Police told us whoever did it knew what they were doing and we’d urge everyone to be vigilant.”

Mr Town must now wait to hear the outcome of his insurance claim. He said: “I’ve been doing some jobs back in Yorkshire but I can’t do that again until I get some tools.”

In addition to loss of earnings, there is also the emotional cost of the crime. Mr Town said: “The most heartbreaking thing is they took my tool box. There were tools in there that were given to me by colleagues who retired and my family - plus a mallet I made when I was an apprentice. They are priceless to me – you can’t replace things like that.”

Anyone offered some cheap tools should call police on 101, quoting incident 134 of February 19.

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