Security officers chase down burglars
Newcastle Great Park England April 5, 2019 A heroic security guard has told how he confronted alleged burglars who tried to steal “thousands of pounds” worth of building materials.
Three men were followed and chased down by security worker Dean Moss who refused to let the alleged intruders get away.
Mr Moss was in his monitoring station in Blyth when an alarm from a construction site went off 13 miles away in Great Park, Newcastle.
A motion detector had been activated at the Taylor Wimpey Brunton West development on Brunton Lane just after 7.30pm on Thursday.
Suspicious Mr Moss and colleague James Taylor rushed down to the Great Park estate and discovered a hole had been cut into the wood panelling around the building site.
Mr Moss said there was “damage to the entry gates and a large hole cut into the compound fencing”.
“Hundreds of pounds of construction materials were piled ready to be taken,” he added.
They then decided to walk around the site with their torches before a Transit van pulled up and he said he saw two men start to load the goods into the back of the vehicle.
Mr Moss, who is the operations manager at Advance 365 security services, used his own vehicle to block the entrance, trapping the van and those inside.
He said he was then rammed three times before the van managed to get past – but Mr Moss wasn’t ready to give up.
He followed the van through the Great Park estate and onto the A1 from a safe distance and informed the police what had happened.
The van drove to Westerhope McDonald’s where three men got out and tried to run off.
Mr Moss said: “All three males jumped out and went down the embankment.
“I gave chase down the embankment before they did a U-turn and came back towards me.
“The first one went past me, the second guy took a swing at me and I took his legs out from underneath him. He stumbled and got back up.
“He wanted to hit me again but both ran off.
Materials collected by alleged burglars at the Taylor Wimpey site on Brunton West in Great Park
“A second white Transit van pulled over to pick them up but I had directed police so they were surrounded and were arrested at that point.”
The pursuit on the roads and at the McDonald’s was also captured on camera.
The 27-year-old, from Blyth, said burglaries at building sites “happen everyday” with offenders often found scoping out the area before attempting to break in.
He believes the items stolen could have been sold on for thousands of pounds, adding “they are very difficult to get hold of, and have a massive resale value”.
Northumbria Police have confirmed that three men were arrested.
A spokesperson said: “Just before 8pm on Thursday police received a report of intruders on the Taylor Wimpey site on Brunton Lane in Kingston Park.
“It was reported that the offenders had broken into the site and then rammed a vehicle of one of security guard before attempting to flee the scene.
“The offenders have then abandoned their vehicle near to the Westerhope McDonalds and fleeing the area on foot.
“Officers have attended the area and three men have been arrested nearby.
“Inquiries into the incident are ongoing and anyone with information that may assist police can contact officers on 101 quoting log 1055 28/03/19.”
All three men have been released under investigation.
