Police are urging the public to be vigilant after the theft of Asian and gold jewellery from homes in Hitchin and Letchworth.

An appeal has been launched today after thieves broke into a home in Hitchin’s Coleridge Close between 12.10pm and 1.20pm on Thursday, February 25, and proceeded to ransack it.

This followed a similar incident between 10.15am and 10.30pm on Saturday, January 9, in which offenders forced their way through a back door at a home in Norton Road, Letchworth. In both cases the thieves made off with Asian jewellery and cash.

Det Con Kerry Burrows said: “Anyone who keeps a large collection of valuable jewellery at home should ensure that their property is secure.

“Burglars tend to target houses that are empty, particularly if they are not very well secured. They are also unafraid to target properties during the day.

“Taking basic steps to secure your home can be enough to deter many burglars. If you have made a significant investment in jewellery, it makes sense to take precautions to protect these items.

“Despite these recent crimes, figures show that dwelling burglaries across North Hertfordshire have dropped by 19.4 per cent year on year and we’re working hard to continue to drive that figure down.

“We want to make Hertfordshire a hostile environment for criminals to operate in. Don’t make it easy for them – assist us by increasing your vigilance and reporting suspicious behaviour.”

Anyone with information about these crimes or similar incidents, or who has been offered Asian or high-value gold jewellery for sale, is asked to contact the police via the non-emergency number 101 quoting crime reference numbers G1/16/477 (for Hitchin) or G2/16/60 (Letchworth).

Alternatively contact Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111 or through crimestoppers-uk.org.