Teesdale police took a 20-mile detour to a crime scene that was less than 50 yards from their station

AN error by a call operator meant police took a 20-mile detour to a crime scene that was less than 50 yards from their station.
Barnard Castle Police were called to Kirk View, in Barnard Castle, last Thursday after thieves broke into a van parked there overnight – but instead went to Kirk View in Middleton-in-Teesdale.
Kirk View, where the van was parked, is directly behind the town’s police station.
A rear window of the van had been knocked out and thieves had tried unsuccessfully to pull out the bicycle that was inside. The victim reported the blunder on social website Facebook.
He said: “It must of happened between 9.45pm last night and 7.30am, when it was reported to the police. The police had a drive out to Kirk View, Middleton-in-Teesdale, this morning instead of driving around the corner to Kirk View, Barney!”
PC David Williamson, of Barnard Castle police team, said police officers were equally frustrated if they get sent to a wrong address. He said the police system automatically comes up with a list of addresses when an operator begins typing.
He said: “When they log these things, unfortunately they might click on the wrong thing. It did get recorded initially as Middleton.”
Along with waiting several hours for police to arrive, the victim expressed concern that no fingerprints were taken.
He said: “Police have now left, no CSI called even though you could see the scum had been trying to nick my Mrs’ bike. They managed to drag it to the broken window only to find the wheels didn’t fit out the window. The police left me with a crime number and the advice of don’t leave anything in your van.”
However, PC Williamson said it would have been waste to call in crime scene investigators because forensic evidence is often impossible to collect in adverse weather conditions. The dust used to pick up fingerprints does not work if the surface is damp and wet, he said. He added that only the spokes were handled by the thief and it would not have been possible to get fingerprints from them.