Jul

Angry landlord slams police force after it fails to tackle nightmare tenant

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A landlord has slammed her local police force for failing to deal with a nightmare tenant who she feared would hurt her or destroy the house.

Despite complaints from neighbours that they were living in constant fear of the man’s actions – who smashed and burnt items day and night – police told Kathy Miller that it didn’t have enough evidence for a criminal conviction.

One neighbour said the tenant had put glass and a used toilet brush through her letterbox and drawn a swastika on her front door, while the Wiltshire-based landlord was also intimidated by the tenant who brandished a hammer when she visited the property in Eastbourne Road, Trowbridge (pictured).

Miller told The Salisbury Journal that during her 30 years in the sector, the tenant was the worst she’d ever dealt with, but the incident was only classified as a civil complaint. She felt helpless and felt the police totally failed her, adding: “The system that should be there for protection is non-existent.”

The landlord didn’t receive rent from the tenant for months, but fears that the tenant might completely destroy the house affected her mental health.

He didn’t pay rent for months and was finally evicted after she served a Section 21 notice. Miller has since had to pay for £30,000 of repairs to clean up the devastation he left behind. “It’s very stressful dealing with a tenant like this,” she adds.

Property damage

Damage to the property included a completely trashed kitchen, ripped-out electrics, smashed windows, graffiti on many walls and a burned garden.

When she filed a complaint to the police and crime commissioner expressing her frustration with Wiltshire Police, the service decided to take no further action.

Wiltshire Police said it had carried out extensive enquiries, including taking a statement from the reporting person and interviewing the suspect. A spokesman adds: “If anyone is unhappy with the service they have received then they are able to pursue a complaint via the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner.”

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