A former police worker who has been terrorised by youths bombarding her home with eggs has announced she is leaving Britain for Australia due to the overwhelming stress and anxiety of the attacks.
Celine Lockyer, 60, returned to the UK in 2017 after spending eight years living down under and never thought she would ever go back.
But now her flights are booked after a series of incidents at her mid-terrace home in Worcester.
‘I am really sad to be going,’ she said, ‘but Britain is not what it was. I don’t feel safe in my own home and I don’t have any confidence in the police to do anything about it.
‘Since the attacks on my home started I have felt stressed and unwell. I am now on anti-depressants and tablets for stress.’
The attacks began in the summer when large apples were catapulted over Celine’s back garden fence from a walkway.
They intensified last month when her bedroom windows were pelted with eggs and tomatoes, causing permanent damage to the walls of her rented property.
Celine believes she has been targeted in a case of mistaken identity as she has not fallen out with anyone in the area.
Celine’s bags are packed after a series of scary attacks on her property in Worcester
Egg insides run down the windows of Celine’s home after the food was pelted at it
‘I used to enjoy sitting out in my back garden,’ she said, ‘but I am too frightened to sit out there.
‘The apples came in at great speed. They could have caused serious injury if one had hit me.
‘Even my little Maltese Cross dog, Milo, is too frightened to go into the back garden on his own. He shakes with fear.’
Despite reporting the offences to police, Celine has been left dismayed by their response.
‘Having worked for West Mercia police for 19 years, I was all for them,’ she said. ‘But since having dealings with them as someone who needs help, I feel so let down.
‘The beat officer was not really interested. He just said it would probably calm down after Halloween.
‘They don’t seem to have any interest in identifying who is doing this when it is going to cost me money.
‘I have tried jet-washing the egg marks off the paintwork but that did nothing.’
She added: ‘My landlady has been wonderful to me since I moved in and I don’t think it is fair for her to pay for new paint so I will end up forfeiting my deposit to pay for it.’
Celine stands in the garden with her dog, with egg and tomato stains running down her house
Egg shells and insides stick to the patio floor of Celine’s home after the attacks
Video captured by Celine shows the moments apples were sent into her back garden in the summer.
Large bangs can be heard as they are fired over her garden fence.
The latest attacks on her property happened when she had friends round last Saturday night.
‘They were watching Strictly on the TV and had it on quite loud but I suddenly became aware of these bangs,’ she said.
‘I went upstairs and my bedroom window was covered in egg.
‘I later found abandoned egg boxes. Whoever did it had bought the eggs from the nearby Tesco superstore and just come round to pelt my property.
‘I just can’t live like this. I feel under siege in my own home. I never thought I would go back to Australia but now I have booked my flights.
‘There is less crime over there and the police are generally better. It’s a sad thing for me to say.’
Jill Mounce, the owner of the two-bed property on what was a quiet close on the outskirts of Worcester, said she was ‘appalled’ by the attacks.
The attacks began in the summer when large apples were catapulted over her back garden fence from a walkway
‘It has caused significant damage to the property,’ she said, ‘and it will need to be re-painted at the back.
‘But when that’s done, what is to stop it happening again?
‘The apple attack was very nasty and could have caused serious injury.
‘I totally understand Celine not wanting to sit outside in the back garden with this threat hanging over her.
‘It is such a shame. You get nice quiet areas like this one but it only takes the odd bad family to ruin the peace for everyone else, and the police don’t seem capable of doing anything about it.’
An elderly neighbour of Celine, who did not want to be named, said: ‘This has always been a very pleasant place to live but what has happened to Celine is just terrible.
‘She has been a really good friend to me and I am going to miss her terribly when she goes.
‘The area has changed. I have had groups of youths knocking on my door in the evening saying they are looking for certain people. It is worrying for us all.’
A spokesperson for West Mercia Police said: ‘On November 2 we received a report of criminal damage to a property on Sandpiper Close in Worcester. The investigation is ongoing.’
