Police Officers Fix Elderly Woman's Home After Damage Caused by Attempted Robbery

By Amanda Thomason October 25, 2018 at 12:52pm

What would you do if someone broke into your house — would you grab a bat? Call your dog? Dial 911?

What if it wasn’t during the dark of night, but the middle of the day? Most robbers aren’t so bold, but that’s what Elaine from Brisbane experienced last Wednesday.

The 76-year-old did something that most of us probably would not have: She went downstairs and confronted the would-be thieves.

They’d succeeded in nearly ripping the door off its hinges when Elaine made it downstairs and was shocked by the state of her entryway. Thankfully, they ran off.

“It was half open, I was terrified,” she told a reporter in an interview with 7 News Brisbane. She called for backup, and they arrived in no time.

“Very quickly these two charming young policemen came,” the elderly woman explained. “Oh, they were absolutely fantastic.”

“I think you’re very brave for coming down these stairs,” the reporter told her. To which the homeowner replied, “I was stupid, probably.”

Whether or not it’s a good idea to confront robbers in your own home, it worked out for the 76-year-old. She had to cancel her plans that day, and was understandably upset, but her day was about to get better.

When Constable Matt Boswell and Senior Constable Christopher Couch arrived on the scene, they could see Elaine had had quite a scare.

“It was clear the lady was very shaken from the ordeal,” Boswell told the Daily Mail. “However, the first thing she said was ‘Do you want a cup of tea?’ That was very thoughtful.”

Just like any grandmother worth her salt, Elaine offered her visitors a drink. But once the two men assessed the damage, Boswell realized he could do more.

“I had a chat with her to calm her down, and then asked if she had any tools, and she had basically everything we needed,” he explained.

So he got the tools together and set to work hanging the door properly and making sure it was secure. In the meantime, Couch took advantage of the setting to take a few pictures of him at work, and then sent them to Bowell’s fiancée.

“I went to work bending the hinges back and drilling new screw holes to re-hang the door on the door jamb,” the policeman/handyman said. “It was not a perfect by any means, but the door was locked and secured.”

After the door was taken care of, the two police officers were given a tour of the woman’s home. They counseled her on how to avoid future break-ins, and even left a note for the eventual repairman so that he could bump up the security in other areas of the house.

“We wanted to make her feel safe in her own home once again,” Boswell said, which was kind especially because Elaine had been recently widowed.

Hopefully Elaine won’t deal with any more break-ins now that her door’s been patched back up. Despite the scare, she was certainly very grateful for these two policemen!

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