Police hunt for ‘violent’ jewellery burglar targeting affluent homes
More than £1m worth of jewellery has been taken in total including irreplaceable heirlooms, some of which have little to no monetary value but are hugely sentimental to the victims
Surrey Police has revealed new information on a man carrying out armed house raids across the south-east of the UK.
A police report suggested that the man might be ex-services or military, due to his methods of preparation and his commanding nature when committing the crimes. On each occasion he used violence and the threat of a sawn-off shotgun to take jewellery and other items.
Police said he “works quickly” and appears to have a knowledge of who is in the home at the time of each attack, the location of safes and the layout of the property. There is also evidence that he was watching several of the houses prior to the burglaries, sometimes for weeks at a time.
Local police said that each of these burglaries has been “extremely distressing” for the victims involved.
Detective inspector Dee Fielding said: “We do not believe this to be the work of an opportunist burglar, but someone who has specialist knowledge and skills – possibly ex-forces or from a similar background, both due to the way he has behaved and the circumstances of each incident.
“On each occasion unnecessary levels of violence have been used in addition to a firearm, which he has used to threaten the victims. Several of the victims were tied with cable-ties.”
He added: “Whoever is responsible for these incidents may seem to have cash or income disproportionate to their job, they might also be travelling frequently, or away for long periods of time without explanation.”
If you have any information please contact Surrey police on OpPrometheus@surrey.pnn.police.uk or Crimestoppers: 0800 555 111
