A COUPLE watched in horror on their phones as a brazen burglar raided their home – unaware that he was being filmed on a hi-tech home security system.

CCTV footage showed a man entering the living room of the house in Belgrave Road, Darwen, and riffling through belongings before exiting the room.

He stole some jewellery and hundreds of pounds in cash in £2 coins.

Lancashire Telegraph:

Motion-sensor cameras were triggered by the break-in and the security system notified the shocked couple who were able to watch a live stream of the crime on their phones.

The victim, who does not want to be named, said: “Our camera picked up someone coming in through the back.

“Me and my husband both got notifications on our phones that our camera had spotted someone. If we open it up it gives us a live stream of what is happening.

"We could have spoken to him if we wanted but didn't want to scare him away before the police got there. Unfortunately he got away anyway.

"My husband immediately phoned the police before heading home.

“He said he must have missed the man by 30 seconds. The police reacted very quickly.”

Lancashire Telegraph:

A police spokesman said officers were called to a burglary at 12.10pm last Wednesday.

They said: “The man had gained entry through the kitchen door and had made a search of the property. As of yet no arrests have been made but the incident is under investigation.”

The victim said many other nearby residents have had their properties broken into in recent months.

She also said her house had been burgled 18 months ago, and believes the man in the CCTV is the same man who broke in the first time.

Lancashire Telegraph:

She said: “After we were first burgled we decided to get the cameras installed, and we’re sure this man is the same man as last time and we believe the police know who he is too.”

The victim said having her house broken into and seeing it all unfold on CCTV was a horrible ordeal.

She said: “We just want him to be caught to stop him from doing it to anyone else. It’s frustrating more than anything as people like this think they have the right to break down our door and help themselves to things that we have worked hard for. Not only that but it then costs money to replace and repair."

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Darwen councillor Dave Smith, who represents the Bold Venture area, said people need to remain vigilant.

He said: “There’s been quite a lot of break-ins and attempted break-ins in the Bold Venture area recently.

"These residents have done the right thing by installing CCTV but they shouldn’t have to do that to keep their homes safe."