Haddonfield Police: Thief Steals Downspout from Home in Mid-Evening

A victim reported an 8-foot section of copper downspout missing from his home in the 300 block of Bellevue Ave. Tuesday, Nov. 15, after apparently scaring theives away shortly after 9 p.m.

The man said he heard a noise and looked out, according to a police report. He noticed his copper downspouts angled in an odd position. He went outside to get a closer look and heard a car speeding off south on Clinton Avenue.

Police responded immediately but were not able to locate a suspect.

Eleven similar thefts have occurred in the last three months in Haddonfield, many here in the Lizzie Haddon section of town, west of Kings Highway, south of Haddon Avenue. Seven occurred last month and nearly two dozen over the last year. A man in the 300 block of Ardmore Ave. was awakened last month when thieves tried to tear the downspouts from his home while he was sleeping.

Borough police Chief John Banning said last month he is stepping up patrols in the area and urges residents to call immediately after discovering thefts. Crime in Haddonfield ticked up sharply in the latest crime figures released by the state this month, with overall incidents increasing by 56 percent and burglary up by nearly 250 percent.

In other police reports, a shoplifting suspect escaped a police chased into the "center of town" on Friday, Nov. 11.

The suspect is accused of "taking numerous items in a black bag" from the Acme supermarket on Walnut Street, near the busy Kings Highway business district. After leaving the store, she tried to make it to a getaway car, but it sped away before she could. Police said she was "lost" in the center of town.