Vandals Cut Wires To Christmas Lights & Steal Decorations From Homes

Vandals have ruined the spirit of Christmas by cutting wires to festive lights outside houses in Market Harborough and trashing decorations.

They struck in the early hours of yesterday in streets off Coventry Road.

The mindless acts of destruction also included wreaths being taken off doors and wrecked, miniature Christmas trees and other plants ripped out of pots and cars damaged.

Ashley Raine lives in Charles Street and spoke to Hfm after having the wires to Christmas lights outside her house cut:

Houses were targeted in Charles Street, Logan Street, Morley Street, Wartnaby Street, East Street, Nelson Street, Highfield Street and Gardiner Street, with wires to lights cut outside eight.

Damage was also caused at the allotments on Stevens Street.

Police believe the same person or people are responsible for 18 incidents which have been reported to them:

• Gardiner Street – The wire of Christmas lights being cut between 1am and 2am; a wreath being stolen from the front door of a property overnight; plant pots from a garden thrown into the road between 1.25am and 1.30am; lights on an outside Christmas tree cut between 1am and 1.30am
• Morley Street – the wire of lights on an outside Christmas tree being cut between 2am and 2.30am; the rope of a fence being cut between 6pm on Saturday and 11am yesterday; damage caused to a Vauxhall Adam between 7.25pm on Saturday and 9.10am yesterday
• Highfield Street – a wreath on the front door of a property being cut up between 1.30am and 1.35am
• Wartnaby Street – rubbish and plant pots removed from a garden and thrown and a Volkswagen Golf being damaged at around 2am; Christmas lights damaged and a wreath stolen between midnight and 8.30am
• Logan Street – a wreath stolen from the front door of a property at around 1.45am; an outside Christmas tree and decorations stolen between midnight and 7am
• Clarke Street – the lights on an outside Christmas tree being cut between 10.30pm on Saturday and 7.45am yesterday
• Highcross Street – damage caused to a Vauxhall Insignia between 4pm on Saturday and 2pm yesterday
• East Street – the wire of external Christmas lights being cut between 11pm on Saturday and 8am yesterday

Sergeant Darren Richardson, deputy commander for the Harborough and Wigston Neighbourhood Policing Area (NPA), believes there will be people that will know who was responsible.

He said: “It’s been a tough year for everyone and people are cheering themselves up by getting into the Christmas spirit and putting decorations up.

“However their celebrations have been ruined by needless acts of vandalism. There may be people living in the community that know who was responsible.

“I would ask anyone with information about any of these incidents to contact us. Any details you’re able to provide – and any footage you may have from CCTV or a dashcam – could help our investigation.”

You can pass on information online by visiting https://www.leics.police.uk/ro/report/ocr/af/how-to-report-a-crime/ and quoting the master crime reference number – 20*643959.

Wires to Christmas lights were cut outside several houses