LAST Sunday, lots of brass outside taps were stolen from the rear lane at High Street, Carrville, causing quite a lot of consternation with water flying everywhere at about 11pm.

Our lane attracts many scrap men as we have a terrace of about 100 houses.

I leave out scrap for them but I have always thought that they will take anything that is not screwed down, but now they are taking things that are screwed down!

I am sure that scrapyards that take their ill-gotten gains must be complicit in these thefts when someone weighs in 20-odd perfectly functional brass taps.

I am sure this is just a sign of the times in our increasingly lawless society.

I pity them if they are caught red-handed.

Malcolm Rolling, Durham