The victim of a burglary in which irreplaceable jewellery was stolen is calling on the controversial Royston ‘ring of steel’ to be brought back to protect the town.
Gill Oram of Nightingale Way has contacted Royston’s MP Sir Oliver Heald with a plea to reintroduce security cameras which monitored all traffic going in and out of the town, which was sidelined after it was ruled unlawful last year.
The 61-year-old said: “When my husband told me we’d been broken into on Thursday, I felt absolutely terrible.
“When I got home I just broke down. Unless this has happened to you, you don’t understand how it feels.
“For people who said the ring of steel was against their privacy, I’d say go and talk to the people who have had this done to them. It’s a horrible feeling.”
Gill and husband Terry had a number of precious items stolen from their house in the burglary.
Thieves stole a necklace Gill’s late brother had bought for her mother, as well as rings of sentimental value and watches that cannot be replaced.
Now Gill feels unsafe in her own home. She said: “The other day Terry went out and I have never felt unsafe before, but I did then.”
Daughter Kerri is echoing her mother’s call to bring back the ‘ring of steel’.
She said: “My mother is feeling awful. It’s not just the personal items, it’s the thought of people coming into your own home, seeing pictures of the family who they are stealing from and not caring.
“With Royston being a small town, everyone knows each other and people are concerned that people are coming into the town and doing this.
“Nobody wants to feel unsafe outside their house, worried about returning home.”
Sir Oliver has backed Gill’s call to bring back the controversial automatic number plate recognition surveillance system.
He told the Crow: “I was a strong supporter of the Royston ANPR and went out with police to see it in action, when they successfully arrested a drug dealer.
“I was sad to see it scaled back following representations to the information commissioner by one local resident.
“I would like to see this reviewed and will contact the chief constable.
“The last time this happened last year, they did catch those responsible.”
Gill’s was one of two houses targeted in the same street on Thursday between 11am and 3pm, with several jewellery items also stolen at the second address.
Two homes in Byron Road were also targeted between 11am and 12 noon the same day, although it is not clear whether anything was taken from either.
All four burglaries involved theives smashing the windows of back or side doors to get inside.
A spokeswoman for Herts police said: “Anyone with information about the burglaries, or who saw any suspicious activity in the area around the times stated is urged to contact police via the non-emergency number 101.”
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