HEARSE IS DESTROYED IN RAM RAID
RAIDERS CAUSED THOUSANDS OF POUNDS WORTH OF DAMAGE AFTER RAMMING INTO FUNERAL DIRECTORS
RAM raiders used a van to smash their way into a funeral directors – then left empty-handed after causing thousands of pounds of damage.
The vehicle was rammed into heavy steel shutter doors at storage facilities used by Pearson Funeral Service and their neighbours, Holme Valley Mountain Rescue Team, on Manchester Road, Marsden.
A Jaguar hearse, which cost around £120,000 to buy new, was badly damaged.
The incident happened around 11.35pm on Sunday.
Clive Pearson, owner of the funeral home, said: “The hearse looks like it has been in a crash.
“I thought my colleague was winding me up when he phoned me. When I saw what had happened I just wanted to cry.”
It appears that nothing was stolen and funeral services have not been affected.
Holme Valley Mountain Rescue (HVMR) volunteers described the damage to their premises as “significant” and it comes just six months after a burglary where equipment worth over £1,000 was taken.
Owen Phillips, a volunteer with HVMR, said the alarm sounded at 11.33pm. He doesn’t believe anything was stolen, although the inventory hasn’t been fully checked.
He added: “At the moment it seems that the thieves made off emptyhanded – possibly as a result of the alarm sounding.
“We have made temporary efforts to secure our premises, and we believe our insurance will see us right with repairs to the door and the fabric of the building.
“But this does leave us at a major inconvenience operationally, with one door out of action, so in order to respond to an emergency we’ll need to shuffle vehicles around to get them out of the remaining door, increasing our response time unnecessarily.”
He added: “Rest assured, though, the team is still operational.”
It’s not certain why the ram-raiders targeted the premises, although it has been suggested that they may have mistakenly believed that motorbikes were being stored there.
A West Yorkshire Police spokesman said: “Police received a report of two attempted burglaries at premises on Manchester Road, Marsden, at around 11.35pm on January 12.
“The suspects drove a van into the shutter doors of two properties, causing considerable damage. They were disturbed and left the scene.”
Anyone with information can contact police on 101 quoting crime reference 13200020397.