Football crazy!
‘Hounded’ by police, gardener who got tired of balls sailing over the fence... and gave them to charity shop
SHOULD a football come flying over the garden fence, most of us would toss it back.
But faced with scores of stray balls – and children trying to retrieve them – you might say enough was enough.
That’s certainly what happened to Anny Kilbourne, who has spent years dealing with wayward shots from the neighbouring playing fields landing on her plants.
having put up with damage caused by youths scrambling on to her property, she says she is being hounded by police – after an incident involving a football team run by a serving officer.
Miss Kilbourne, 56, claims the side sent two balls flying over her fence in quick succession, including one that struck her in the face.
She later confronted the football club, but says she was refused an apology. She then decided against returning the balls – and gave them to a charity shop.
Miss Kilbourne now fears she could end up in court unless she pays the club £26 to cover the loss of the two balls.
She is terrified at the prospect of a prosecution – but is still refusing to pay because she believes she is the real victim.
Miss Kilbourne, of Exeter, said: ‘I have always had a deep- seated respect for the police. But now I find myself being harassed by them, in a situation in which I believe they shouldn’t even be involved.
‘For the 12 years I’ve lived here I’ve constantly had footballs kicked on to my property. They are often followed by trespassing to recover them. The former has caused damage, the latter more, to a total of over £1,000.’
Miss Kilbourne’s property is the only one next to the playing fields which has no protective trees or vegetation. It has a high perimeter fence but footballs still go over it. This year the city council put up a sign on the field asking users not to trespass on neighbouring properties to recover balls.
Miss Kilbourne, a transport worker, said that after being hit in the face she approached the youth team responsible – the Exeter Panthers – and spoke to their team supervisor, police officer Chris Leisk. When no apology was forthcoming, she says she refused to hand the balls back, acting out of desperation – and to discourage further incidents. The club reported this to police as a theft, and Miss Kilbourne claims that since then she has been inundated with personal visits, emails and phone calls from other ‘It has officers. reached the point where I’m scared to open my door or answer the phone,’ she said. She says one officer reduced her to tears on July 12. ‘We are told the police are short of resources, but it seems they have enough to carry out this harassment of an elderly resident whose only “crime” is to live in the wrong place,’ Miss Kilbourne said.
‘I have become scared and mistrustful of the police and am also angry that public money is being spent on this hounding of me.
‘Today I have had a hand-delivered letter insisting I attend an “interview” on August 8. If I fail to
‘I’m scared to open my door’
attend, or, presumably, if I continue to decline to give money to the club, I will be arrested.’
Mr Leisk insisted that the club had apologised to Miss Kilbourne and offered to provide its insurance details so she could claim for any damage that had occurred – which she declined.
‘The club feel that it is only right for the resident to compensate it for the £26 for the cost of the balls,’ he added.
devon and Cornwall Police claimed Miss Kilbourne had ‘refused to engage’ with it, despite an offer to try to resolve the row.