Man catches thief on CCTV stealing £1,500 worth of items from car claims police say case ‘not worth investigating’

A man who lost £1,500 worth of items after his car was broken into claims he was told by the Met that it was “not worth investigating,” despite the fact he caught the whole thing on camera.

Tom Bonello, who lives in Brixton Hill, Lambeth, had his car broken into at around 3am on Sunday.

A suitcase with expensive clothes and sentimental items inside, a wallet and provisions for a community barbecue that day were stolen.

Mr Bonello caught the the crime on his home CCTV equipment. It shows a man walking around trying the handles on a few cars before taking a tool out and popping the window out of a car with a screwdriver. He then walks away with Mr Bonello’s possessions.

Watch as the thief breaks into Mr Bonello’s car (Video: Tom Bonello)

Mr Bonello called the police to report the crime on Sunday morning and was told a forensics team would be there to investigate.

But more than six hours later when they had not arrived he claims he called them back and they told him the case had been “triaged” as they would not be sending a team because the case was “not worth investigating”.

“They’ve essentially decriminalised theft,” said Mr Bonello. “I feel like I live in anarchic place. It’s shaken my belief in public institutions if I can be stolen from and my safety and relaxation ruined with no recourse.

“They haven’t asked me to send any evidence. His fingerprints and handprints are all over the cars in the street. His nose was even pressed up to the window. They didn’t even ask me for a description.”

The man who stole Mr Bonello’s wallet then went on a spending spree around Brixton, spending more than £100 before the fraud team at the victim’s bank froze the card.

Mr Bonello claims that after he made a complaint he spoke to a senior officer who told him fingerprints were not “strong enough evidence”.

“The attitude of that officer was essentially ‘this is beneath us’. He didn’t apologise or make any recognition of the complaint at all,” added Mr Bonello.

“The only assumption you can make is that theft doesn’t matter at all to the police.”

When the South London Press approached the Met for comment they said that officers had spoken to the victim and gathered CCTV, but Mr Bonello said he had to do all the work for them.

He said: “I phoned them several times to try and push this issue and track down a way for me to send them the evidence. I therefore ‘gathered’ this myself rather than this seeming like they’ve been actively trying.

“I tracked down the timestamps, locations and a walking route that the perpetrator took and had to phone multiple times to provide this.

“It was only late last night that I could send that and I am yet to have heard from an investigating officer.”

A spokeswoman for the Met said: “Police were called on Sunday, June 4 to a report of items stolen from a car parked in Brixton Hill, Lambeth.

“The victim reported that the car’s window had been smashed and a bag and other belongings taken from inside.

“Officers have spoken to the victim and gathered CCTV. Enquiries remain ongoing.”

Pictured top: The thief uses a tool to pop Mr Bonello’s car window open (Picture: Tom Bonello)