Nurses’ house raided while they slept

The house on Oakbank Road was burgled while one student was sound asleep

burglary oakbank road robbery smithdown student house

A house of female students were left terrified after their house was broken into – while one of them was sleeping.  

Emma McGarrity, a second year student nurse, has spoken of the horror of finding her house robbed during the summer.

Emma and fellow nurse Josie Lawren had been staying in the house on Oakbank road (off Smithdown) together while on a 12 week placement over the summer.

Burglaries in Smithdown in July this year

Josie said: “I was sleeping when they robbed the house. I woke up to Emma’s friend coming in saying all my stuff had gone.”

Josie stayed in but Emma was out for the night with her boyfriend Jamie and friend Andrew.

When they returned home at 2:30am August 1 they found the house ransacked.

Emma said: “We came back and my friend Andrew went upstairs to find his passport and boarding passes laid out on the bed and all his money taken from the plastic wallet that they were all in.

“Then we went downstairs and all of our phones had been stolen from the dining room.

“Josie’s bag was also stolen with her house keys in it for her house down Kenmare Road, so she had to get her locks changed.

“They also took Capri Suns and two Rustlers burgers from the fridge.”

These burglars weren’t looking for a long distance getaway, leaving the boarding passes for the two boys back to Belfast behind, they took other items of value.

Worryingly the keys stolen had the address of Josie’s home on Kenmare Road on.

Josie said: “The next morning my Dad changed the locks and I stayed at my Grandma’s because I was a bit scared.

“But when I went to use my new keys in my new lock it was scratched to shit, so someone tried to use the old keys to get in.”

Scarily, the incident happened at a time when few students are living in Smithdown.

Emma said: “The police said it’s been really bad this summer for burglaries for some reason because normally there aren’t many because students are away, home.

“Garmoyle Road has apparently been the worst.”

It has left the girls anxious and scared in their own homes.

Josie said: “I think there’s someone downstairs when it’s just the washing machine.

“Every noise freaks me out. I’m home alone and have all the doors locked from like 6pm, even my bedroom.”

Emma added: “It just seems as if they knew it was an easy target, like students with loads of phones etc, they were obviously only after stuff they could sell or money.”

There has been a spike of burglaries in the area recently.

The scene at Langdale Road on Monday

On Monday, a house on Langdale Road was ransacked as robbers stole over £3,500 worth of goods.