RESIDENTS across the borough have reported sightings of two men in a van looking for ‘scrap metal’.
Throughout the week, there have been a number of postings on social media making people aware of the men.
There is no suggestion that the men have stolen anything.
However, residents have said that the men have been seen walking on to driveways, looking into rear gardens and through windows and driving slowly around roads.
In other sightings, the van has been blocking driveways or been parked inappropriately so that it was obstructing a road.
And in one incident, the two men walked down a driveway in Earley to look into a rear garden, but were disturbed by a dog who barked to alert this owners. The person who reported the incident again said that the men were looking for scrap metal.
The behaviour is being described as suspicious and in some cases the police have been called. As there have been multiple sightings in different parts of the borough, The Wokingham Paper is publishing this piece to raise awareness.
The Wokingham Paper has contacted Thames Valley Police for advice.
In a similar case elsewhere in Thames Valley Police’s area, they posted the following tips:
“Make sure you challenge anyone coming onto your property and if you feel their presence is suspicious, take the initiative and phone the police on 999 once it is safe to do so.
“Burglary and theft are serious offences and if these people are wrongdoers, they need catching up with and taken off of our streets.
“We encourage you all to visit the Thames Valley Police Website to see how easy it is to make reports of crimes, to get advice or to simply tell us about something you saw and think we need to know about it. To save you time searching, simply copy this link – https://www.thamesvalley.police.uk/ – and enter this in your search bar.
“If you do not have access to a computer please dial 101 and speak to a member at the Police enquiry centre.”
