80-year-old helps police catch raiders

May 23 2009 by Sophie Doughty, The Journal

BURGLARS were snared by police after a quick-thinking pensioner spotted them raiding his neighbour’s home.

Bill Tonks caught the men in the act as they attempted to load a safe into a pick-up truck.

Peering through the branches of a tree outside his kitchen window, the 80-year-old, who is recovering from a knee-replacement, was able to give police a step-by-step running commentary of the suspicious activity going on across the road. And the information he provided helped officers from Durham Police swoop on the alleged raiders, surrounding them and making five arrests.

Police have praised Bill for his fast action, which helped them snare the suspects.

But the modest pensioner, told The Journal he was simply lucky to be in the right place at the right time.

He said: “It’s just a chance in a million that I went to the window when I did. But I would like to think that if it happened to me somebody else would do the same.”

Bill, who is retired, was at home in Wingate, County Durham, on Thursday, when he spotted the strange goings-on.

He said: “I had just had a knee operation and I have to take a pill every three hours. I keep my pills in the kitchen and I just happened to look out of the window and I saw a man come out the house and talk to another man who was in a pick-up van parked outside.”

At first Bill was unconcerned about the men, who were smartly dressed and did not look suspicious.

But when the alarm at the house began to sound he realised something was wrong and called the police. He said: “The girl on the phone told me to keep watching them and tell her what they were doing.