Masked men caught on church roof stealing lead... but that's not enough evidence, say police

Police arrived in time to catch the trio - in balaclavas and masks - red-handed.

Lead had been taken off and rolled up nearby ready to be taken away.

But to the astonishment of residents they only got a caution because officers decided they may just have been admiring the view.

Under threat: St Helen's Parish Church has already lost a substantial amount of lead from its roof and clock tower

After ten thefts of lead in as many months from St Helen's Church in Treeton, South Yorkshire, locals had become so desperate they had even set up their own undercover operation to catch them.

However, police let the suspects off because of 'insufficient evidence'.

The men had nothing incriminating in their possession when searched and no fingerprints could be taken from the stolen lead.

Churchwarden's wife Carole Robinson says 85 per cent of the lead on the roof has been taken.

She added: 'It was beyond belief. The police said they could claim they had only gone up to look at the view. It left people furious.

'We have been plagued with lead thefts and when we finally catch men on the roof they let them off.'

The roof is covered with plastic sheets while officials raise £100,000 to fix it, plus the same amount to repair the tower of the church, which is in the Domesday Book.

Builders have erected scaffolding to replace the roof with stainless steel sheets, but thieves have used it to get easier access and steal lead they could not reach before.

Residents spotted the men on the roof after evening service on Sunday.

Mrs Robinson said: 'The police arrived and the men came down and in effect gave themselves up.

'It seemed they had been caught red-handed. Lead had been removed and rolled up ready to be carried off.

'But the police said lead was not the kind of material you could get fingerprints from and they did not have enough evidence to take them to court because they could not link the men to the lead. I felt totally vulnerable. The law seems to be on the side of the criminals.'

Suggestions from police that the men were just 'youths' caught on scaffolding were angrily refuted.

She said: 'They were men aged between 20 and 30 and they had balaclavas and gloves. I think it's quite wrong for the police dismiss this as youths playing on the scaffolding.'

But Chief Inspector Jason Harwin said: 'Four officers, including a dog handler, spoke with three youths who were on the scaffolding.

'Officers searched all three and examined the surrounding area but found no evidence that any offences had been committed, nor that the youths possessed any articles with

which to commit any offences. Officers had no power to arrest these youths. They were warned to stay away from the property.

'Operations have been conducted to catch offenders stealing lead but these have been to no gain. Work is continuing to tackle the issue.'

Thefts of lead from church roofs have become a national problem. Ecclesiastical Insurance, which covers 95 per cent of Anglican churches in Britain received 2,000 claims relating to lead thefts worth £6million in 2007. In 2005, there were 80 claims for  £300,000.