Inspector Pete Gebbie, who is in charge of local policing in Ross, has warned householders that leaving homes in darkness all day while they are at work or shopping is a mistake. He said it is a sign to people with criminal intentions that the house is empty and they are unlikely to be disturbed while carrying out their activities.

Inspector Gebbie spoke to the Gazette after four burglaries, carried out in very similar ways, took place within a few days. In each case the burglars literally turned out drawers and cupboards as they searched for valuables leaving a terrible, and distressing for the victims, mess in their wake.

In all the cases the housholders returned home to find their homes in chaos and precious, sentimental items stolen.

Inspector Gebbie said:?"Luckily this type of crime is unusual in Ross and I know how distressing it can be, it is the most upsetting experience, which is why we are doing all we can to track down those responsible."

There were two burglaries on Thursday, December 1st. Between 10.30am and 5.50pm a bungalow on Cawdor Hill was entered when one or probably two people forced a rear window. Then the intruders closed all the curtains before they made a very untidy search and stole a large quantity of jewellery.

A similar burglary occurred in Wilton Lane between 11.45am and 7pm. Again the burglars approached from the rear of the property, broke in through a locked, double-glazed windows, disabled a security light and closed the curtains. They made a thorough search and stole a quantity of cash and jewellery.

Between Wednesday, November 30th and Saturday, December 3rd a house at Primrose Close was burgled but in this incident a large amount of electrical equipment was stolen.

On Friday, December 2nd burglars went to a house in Mayhill Road between 8.50am and 7pm and entered via a first floor bedroom window. They made an untidy search of two upstairs bedrooms, the dining room and lounge. A large quantity of jewellery was stolen together with a Dell laptop. Pillowcases were used to carry the items away.

A police spokesman said:?"There has been a definite spike in the number of burglaries carried out in the Ross area over the past week. West Mercia has dedicated extra resources to investigating these incidents."

Anyone with any information about these burglaries or saw any suspicious activity in the area, or has any idea where the stolen items have gone should telephone 0300 3000 333.

However these were not the only incidents of theft in Ross during this same time span. Two Royal pythons were stolen from Rain Forest Exotics, the pet shop on the Haigh Industrial Estate. Both pythons were fairly young and about one foot long each. They were housed in a locked vivarium at the back of the store and disappeared sometime between 9.30am and 10.45 on Saturday, December 4th.

And trees planted at the church by school children in Weston under Penyard were stolen just days later. Read the full report in this week's Gazette.