Gosport man charged over golf club break-in
Repair bill likely to be £1k-plus
POLICE have charged a man over a break-in at Lee-onthe-Solent Golf Club, which caused more than £1,000 in damage.
An automatic security alarm alerted officers to the break-in at the golf club shortly after midnight on Monday, May 10.
Police have now charged Peter Francis Civil, a 37-yearold from Anns Hill Road in Gosport, with burglary following the incident.
Officers found a door had been damaged and the bar area had been ransacked, as well as two charity boxes – for the Rainbow Centre in Fareham and Naomi’s House – were stolen.
The glass in an emergency door has been smashed and the shutters to the bar were damaged as they were forced open, with the club expecting to incur a repair bill of more than £1,000, according to general manager Andrew Buck.
He said: ‘The bar shutters were pulled down and various bottles were smashed. There were some money bags taken – they were found by the police and they have them as evidence. They would contain less than £100. They also took about two bottles of wine with them.
‘For very little stolen, there’s quite a lot of damage. The shutters at the bar have to be replaced, and there was a lot of glass to clear up.
‘It has been a lot of inconvenience.’
The club is pursuing an insurance claim to cover the costs.
Civil is due to appear at Portsmouth Magistrate Court later today.
A second man, a 38-yearold from Gosport, was arrested on suspicion of burglary, and has been released from custody but remains under investigation while enquiries continue, according to Hampshire Constabulary.
The golf club has reopened its course, as well as outdoor service from the bar, and it plans to open for indoor service when lockdown restrictions are eased on Monday, May 17.
The bar shutters were pulled down and various bottles were smashed. Andrew Buck