Police are trying to decipher the symbols being used by burglars to pick out homes they want to target.
The cunning criminals are marking symbols on people’s property to indicate whether they are worth burgling.
The entrance to a home in Crawley was daubed with a symbol at the end of last month, leading to Sussex Police to issue an appeal.
They sent an email alert to residents which said: “We are asking residents to report any writing or symbols that have been drawn on their homes, driveways or boundary to their property as soon as possible.”
Now Detective Inspector Tracy Edwards has told The Argus she wants to compile a list of symbols marked on pavements, driveways and garages so Sussex Police officers can beat the burglars at their own game and work out what each message means.
She asked anyone who sees a symbol to photograph it and pass it on to their local police team, so they can collate them and decipher the criminals’ code.
DI Edwards said symbols meant different things - some probably mean “it’s vulnerable”, while others told criminals “don’t go into there”.
Meaning
She said it was likely that gangs of burglars working together were using the symbols to alert one another as to the worth of a property.
She said: “We would like to decipher the codes.
“If we get enough of the codes we would be able to start deciphering them and see what they mean.”
Following the incident in Crawley two men were spotted making off from the property.
DI Edwards said it was likely these people were would-be burglars and it was possible other codes had been marked but homeowners had not realised their significance.
She continued: “Burglars can operate in groups or alone.
“There are ways to reduce your risk of becoming a victim by taking precautions including shutting windows and locking doors.”
In 2009 in Tanbridge, Surrey, near East Grinstead, police warned about a similar set of codes – dubbing it the Da Pinchi Code.
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