GREENSIDE CARS 2 Barber St, HECKMONDWIKE
VERTICAL BLINDS
01924 408840 TEXT-A-TAXI 07874 377231
3 FOR
£89 SALE 046 1502
24 HOUR SERVICE
Tel: 0800
01274 305 410
Your Local, Reliable and Friendly Taxi Service!
ONE PAPER ... ALL THE NEWS from Dewsbury, Batley, Ossett, Mirfield, Liversedge, Birstall, Heckmondwike, Cleckheaton & Spen Valley
Flyover fun for Batley this weekend p19
KOZEE SLEEP – LATESTp4 PROM SHOP HEARTBREAK p3 Owner vows to fight on as designer dresses stolen
Friday May 29, 2015
12 MONTHS GUARANTEE
No. 687
50p
Shock at RL star Deano’s death p5
KNH SHAME Housing organisation changed locks to let fraudsters into bungalow of dying woman – which was then looted and ransacked By Danny Lockwood THE family of a Dewsbury woman in hospital with terminal cancer were left devastated when Kirklees Neighbourhood Housing gave fraudsters access to her house, which led to it being burgled and ransacked. KNH sent a locksmith to open Sandra Wilkinson’s council bungalow in Staincliffe Crescent, after receiving a call from a woman claiming to be her. Apart from a cursory name, address and date of birth check, no other security measures were taken. Although police traced the woman who made the call and her brother – a former partner of Mrs Wilkinson – they were unable to link them to the theft and damage. The pair denied the crime which the patient’s family discovered the next day. Mrs Wilkinson, 59, who was diagnosed with cancer in March, never came home from hospital and died in Kirkwood Hospice on May 4th. Her family managed to keep the trauma of the burglary and ransacking from her. Household goods and personal items including bequests left in Mrs Wilkinson’s will, were all taken.
Nearly a month on, the family are still fighting KNH for compensation and a proper apology. Her daughter, Wendy Miller, said: “Mum had nothing, she had willed all her trinkets and a few bits such as her laptop to her grandchildren. “This was all taken and her bungalow was destroyed. Skirting boards and doors were ripped off, it was a mess.
‘We are working to learn from this and make sure it cannot happen again’ “I have been in dialogue with KNH and its chief executive Simon Rogers for eight weeks now and we still haven’t had a settlement. “More importantly, people need to know how easy this was to do. “This woman phoned the out-of-hours number saying she was my mum and claiming to be vulnerable. “They sent a locksmith out who turned up and saw a man and woman outside in a car, that’s all.
“He simply changed the locks and gave them the keys. They weren’t asked for any identification. “It is a scandal, and barely believable that such a simple scam could happen. We believe people should know how easily this was done.” A KNH spokesperson said: “We were very shocked to learn about what happened to our tenant’s home and completely understand how upset her family are. “We understand that the tenant’s home was entered through deception and we are continuing to help the police with their enquiries. “We are also doing all we can to help and support the family at this difficult time. “We can only apologise for unknowingly contributing to this situation and we are working with Council colleagues to learn from this and take steps to make sure this cannot happen again, while also making sure we can continue to provide a responsive emergency repairs service to our tenants.” Mrs Miller said she understood from police that the woman who inpersonated her mother had admitted the offence and been dealt with out of court.
Mrs Sandra Wilkinson – family kept trauma from her