‘It’s not even the stealing as such, it’s the fact he’s snooping around’Doorbell camera captures man snooping around house
A man appearing to pose as a delivery driver has been caught on camera in the Wirral “snooping” in people’s gardens, leading to the theft of a “sentimental” item. Steve Renshaw’s wife was home alone at their property in Prenton when she noticed a man in their garden wearing a hi-vis jacket who reportedly stole an iron bench at around 9.30am on Friday, March 20.
Steve, 43, was out when he received a call from his wife who noticed someone who “looked like a delivery driver” wearing a hi-vis jacket looking into their back garden, so Steve went straight onto his phone to check the Ring doorbell app.
Steve said: “So I’ve obviously gone to check the camera and then he sort of walked down as he’s noticed the cameras come on. He’s looked at it, done a bit more snooping around our property and then went to the front.”
CCTV footage shared by Steve shows the moment a man looks around the bins in Steve’s front yard, before moving something out of the way to see what is behind it before walking away. The same man is then again seen walking around to the front garden, peering over a high ledge before leaving the property.
The man eventually left Steve’s home after he was asked to “go away”.
Steve said: “It’s not even the stealing as such, it’s the fact he’s snooping around.”
He said: “In light of that, he turned around and sort of leaned over our fence and took what he would’ve thought to be scrap metal in our garden.
“It was basically a bench that we were planning to do up. It was my wife’s grandmother’s, and obviously it had sentimental value to her.”
Steve has lived in the Wirral all his life and said his wife is simply “annoyed” this happened. The plumber said without his Ring doorbell he just “wouldn’t have had any evidence, it’s as simple as that”.
A similar incident happened around 17 years ago, Steve says, when he lived next door to his parents who moved to live with his grandmother. He remembered how a rail for his nan’s stairlift was taken when it was left outdoors waiting to be fitted. Steve said: “My nan really needed that rail. My mum and dad just couldn’t afford to buy another. Having CCTV is good, but it doesn’t stop people. Long gone are the days where you can leave your door open.”
A spokesperson for Merseyside Police said: “We are appealing for information following a theft in Prenton.
“The incident occurred at around 9.30am on Friday, March 20 when it was reported that a man stole an iron bench from the front garden of a home.
“Enquiries are ongoing into the incident and we are appealing for anyone with information to come forward.”
Anyone with information should contact Merseyside Police social media desk via X or Facebook @MerPolCC. You can also report information via their website: https://www.merseyside.police.uk/ro/report/ocr/af/how-to-report-a-crime/ or by calling 101 quoting incident reference 26000239883.
Alternatively, contact the independent charity Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111, or via their website here: https://crimestoppers-uk.org/give-information/forms/give-information-anonymously
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