Double frustration as next door neighbours both experience car break-ins

Two local girls have expressed their anger as both their cars have been broken into in two separate incidents. 

Courtney Cunningham and Hannah Adshead of Argyll Road, Cheadle experienced attempted break-ins to their vehicles in the last two months. 

Cunningham, 22, woke up to find that the car handle of her Fiat 500 had been completely pulled off in an attempt to gain access to the vehicle. 

“I left my house to go to work on Tuesday morning and when I got to my car I realised that the handle was completely snapped off, there’s no explanation for this other than someone trying to break in.”

Cunningham goes on to explain how she had to use the passenger door of her car to gain access and then climb over the seats.

“For over two weeks I had to just climb over the seats of the car because I couldn’t afford to just get it fixed. Even though it’s only a smart part, people underestimate how much damage to cars actually costs.”

The police were informed of the incident, and Cunningham received a crime number, but she says, that’s all she received.

“I phoned the police and reported it, but they told me they don’t come out for car break-ins, I got a crime number and that was pretty much the end of it.

“There was no investigation that I know of as to why this has become a regular occurrence in the area.”

Adshead, 20, explained how a similar incident happened to her, just next door to the first offence. 

Just over a month after the incident which left Cunningham’s vehicle vandalised and partly unusable, Adshead woke up to the passenger side of her own car completely smashed.

“It happened in the night again, like it did with Courtney’s, I woke up to go to work and came outside to see that my window had been completely smashed in.”

Strangely though, Adshead explained that although the window was smashed, nothing was taken out of the car.

“It makes me think even more that this must’ve just been done by some kids because if they smashed my window that means they had access to my car, but nothing was taken out of it.”

Adshead also informed the police but said they were actually unhelpful with the process, not even providing her with a crime number.

“I phoned the police after I found my car smashed and they told me over the phone that they would email me a crime number, but they just never did. I never heard anything back from them.”

Both girls agree that crime and anti-social behaviour around Cheadle and the surrounding SK8 postcode area has risen recently and something should be done to try and tackle it.

“I think a youth centre is actually a good idea for Cheadle. It’s never had one before other than the after-school clubs the Churches used to run,” Cunningham explained.

“They weren’t targeted towards young people who have problems that needed to be addressed like the idea of this new one would be. I think it’s got a lot of potential.”