Burglaries spark police warning

POLICE are on full alert after more daring daylight burglaries have been reported in an isolated Saddleworth village.

Three homes in Denshaw were targeted between 8am and lunchtime on Friday when thieves gained entrance to two properties by smashing ground floor windows, ransacking the premises and stealing items.

At the third house, offenders smashed a rear ground floor window, went through personal possessions and stole off-road bikes from an outside shed.

And police revealed there have been 55 domestic burglaries in Saddleworth since the beginning of August.

They have also taken the unprecedented step of releasing details of 17 burglaries which have brought worries to targeted villages of Delph, Dobcross, Diggle and Greenfield in recent weeks.

Figures just released for September show eight burglaries in Grasscroft, Uppermill and Greenfield.

GMP's Oldham division are working closely with West Yorkshire police trying to combat the sharp upsurge of property raids across Saddleworth.

It is believed up to three gangs, based in Yorkshire, are travelling into Saddleworth deliberately focusing on properties they may have surveyed in undercover operations.

In the tragic trail of attacks, villains use rocks and sometimes gardening implements, breaking windows and doors to gain access to properties.

In a raid at Dobcross offenders used a stone and a broom handle to smash glazing in both front door and rear kitchen windows.

They entered the dwelling and conducted an untidy search of all rooms. But as they were leaving, they were confronted by a witness who attempted to block their escape using his vehicle.

The witness was threatened by the offenders and they made off from the scene in a vehicle which, along with another, it is believed to have been used in the raids.

Both vehicles were later seized.

In Delph, offenders used a set of ladders left in the garden to gain access through a bathroom window to a detached house where they ripped a bedroom fireplace from the walls.

In Diggle raiders used bodily force to gain entry to an attached garage of a secluded property.

They wielded an axe found in the garage to smash through an internal door gaining access to the main dwelling.

Police are advising home owners to consider using light timers to ensure properties look occupied with nights drawing in.

They added: "Burglaries as a whole are still on the increase in the Saddleworth area.

"Please report any suspicious activity/person immediately in order for us to identify offenders."

And after the weekend raids, police and the Denshaw Community Association are warning of extra vigilance.

In a note to villagers, Denshaw Community Association said: "The police are clearly taking the situation seriously as they do not normally give quite as much detail on burglaries.

"It is reassuring they have tracked down the cars believed to be involved in the raids. In a sense they are giving us a checklist for the possible weak points round our own houses."