A PLUCKY pensioner has told how she slammed the door shut on a burglar.
Frightened Freda Nolan threw herself against her front door to keep out an intruder as he attempted to get in.
The 83-year-old said she was watching television when she got up to answer her front doorbell.
She said: "When I went to the door, I just opened it a little way. I had not got my chain on.
"This chap was at the door and said someone has left a parcel for him somewhere round here. I told him I was afraid it was not here, and he said he would just come in and have a look anyway.''
Mrs Nolan said: "He tried to push the door open and I pushed it back, and the door went back in his face. I pushed the door shut with both hands.
"It was a real shock, but now I am getting over it.''
This latest attempt in what has been a spate of walk-in burglaries in Middlesbrough, happened in the Priestfields area of the town at the weekend.
The would-be thief made off empty-handed on a bicycle.
Mrs Nolan said: "I am still on the alert all the time. You do not feel safe in your own home unless the door is locked."
She said her advice to others is: "Do not answer the door unless it is on the chain and you know who it is.''
Echoing her message, a spokesman for Cleveland Police said: " We always tell people to never let a stranger in, but always check and, if in doubt, keep them out.''
l A woman was admitted to hospital where she was treated for shock after a conman, pretending to be a water company official, bluffed his way into her home, on Middlesbrough's Pallister Park estate.
She and her husband, both in their late-70s, let the conman in when he told them it was an emergency. The thief stole a substantial sum of money, bank books and war medals.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereComments are closed on this article