A man has been arrested on suspicion of burglary after businesses were broken into in Barnard Castle.
Officers were called to four properties in the town this morning (May 15) following reports of criminal damage and burglary.
It is believed the suspect carried out three burglaries – The Moody Baker, The Sandra Parker Studio and Nimbus Vape Shop before attempting to burgle Katie’s Traditional Fish Shop in the early hours of this morning.
It is unknown what has been taken at this time.
The suspect then attended an address in Gainford whereby attempts were made to remove a car to gain access into the garage. In doing so, the male caused extensive damage to the vehicle. The suspect made off when disturbed by the homeowner.
Soon after, officers located and detained the male in Staindrop who was arrested on suspicion of burglary.
Inspector Ed Turner, from Barnard Castle Neighbourhood Team, said: “I would like to reassure the residents of Barnard Castle and its surrounding areas that this is a rare incident. It is noticeable that the person we have arrested is not local to County Durham and Darlington.”
Enquiries are ongoing.
![A COUNTY councillor is backing a campaign to get a pedestrian crossing in Staindrop. Frustrated parish councillors in the village summoned their county council representative Cllr George Richardson to their latest meeting to discuss several issues, including the call for a safe way to cross the A688. Earlier this year their request for a crossing was turned down by the county council’s highways officers. Parish council chairman Jonothan Raper described the reasons for the refusal as “spurious” and called on Cllr Richardson to support their campaign. He added: “One of the arguments they made was there is no clear line of desire when they studied the village – well this isn’t a clear line of desire because there isn’t a crossing, people cross whenever they can. “When the lollipop person was there, one of the things I noticed was people would walk all the way down to the lollipop person to cross the road to go to the shop or to go to the school.” He added a problem of parking at the primary school is exacerbated because people are too afraid to walk their children across the road. Cllr Richardson said he had supported previous attempts for a crossing point with the first being made about 15 years ago. He added: “We went fairly well down the road with that and they looked into it. The only recommended place was where the bus stop is and to get the visibility splays, people on the other side of the road would lose their parking. “That didn’t go down well so it just died a death.” Cllr Raper said he suspected the real reason for the officers’ refusal was the cost of installing a crossing. He added that much of the cost could be recovered from savings made on not having to employ a lollipop patrol. Cllr Raper said: “A lollipop person only provides a benefit of crossing for three hours of the day. You are getting 21 extra hours of crossing time [with a pedestrian crossing].” Cllr Richardson said he would raise the issue with the county council’s cabinet member for highways, Cllr John Shuttleworth.](https://teesdalemercury.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/georgeR-120x86.jpg)
