Sunderland Fans' Museum Founder Michael Ganley speaks out on the issue of Silent Crime.
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00:00Okay, Michael, would you start by asking about some of the types of crime, the number of
00:15crime you've been a victim of since you opened back in 2019?
00:20We've probably seen over 15 incidents back here, from lead theft, which was of considerable
00:26impact. We actually broke into the venue a number of times, our wagon shed being broken
00:34into, the staining of our flags, our football table externally, as well as obviously all
00:42the graffiti that's now on the building.
00:45Can you give me a couple of instances where you've contacted the police and where you
00:48feel that it wasn't resolved satisfactorily and not much was done?
00:53I think one time, a very powerful time, was the time when there was two people in the
00:56building helping themselves to a number of bottles of air, spirits, and the CCTV team
01:03from Somerset City Council had actually caught the guys walking across the railway bridge
01:07to find out that the police were too busy, even though they could have caught them red-handed,
01:13just didn't bother attending. It took them two days to attend after that.
01:18These are the instances when there was a situation when there was somebody on the roof and it
01:24was a police matter and it didn't have any impact on me, but obviously it did because
01:29we found out that there was a great deal of damage to the slates on the roof. But again,
01:35the communication with the police, sometimes now it's not even worth making the phone call to them.
01:42Is that the point you're at now? I mean, when you get these instances happen, do you know
01:46somebody's not bothering to report them to the police or is that something you still always do?
01:50Yeah, purely and simply because it's literally, there's your crime number and resolution is
01:57not making a claim for my insurance. We've never made a claim. I don't want to make a claim.
02:01It just puts a big black dot against what I want to do in the city to support, you know,
02:06who I support. So yeah, I can understand the resources, but also on the other hand,
02:11the frustration, not just for myself, there's a lot of other businesses out there who are basically,
02:18let's use the word one man bands, who've got a big impact when something happens to them. So
02:25ourselves now have just come to the conclusion, we just get on with it like we've done from day one,
02:31but it would be nice to get some support, shall we say. I know the fans are going to do a heck
02:36of a lot for the local community. How does it make you feel when you get targeted in this
02:41sort of way, particularly with something to do with the football club, which is such a big part
02:45of the city? It does affect me, obviously, because, you know, it's part of my personal collection that's
02:52on display in the building seven days a week, seven nights a week. But from that, we've got
02:58obviously a lot of vulnerable team members who need support. They don't need to be waking up
03:06on the morning to find out that fans may have even broken into. The insecurity in their lives is
03:10because of health reasons. I want to bring them into an environment that gives them support,
03:15but also gives them a safe space. And obviously, seeing these stories,
03:19needing these stories obviously does have an effect on people.
03:22And so what more do you think the police need to do to tackle things like anti-social behaviour,
03:27vandalism, the graffiti you've experienced? I suppose crime should be considered not a
03:32top priority. What more do you think they should be doing?
03:34Definitely communication. We've got community police, but unfortunately, we never see them.
03:41And while we never see them, obviously, what's the point? We just get told we'll come out.
03:47You know, we're on beck and call for people to come and pay us a visit from the police, but
03:53we never see them. But obviously, there should never be a priority in the level of crime.
03:59The crime, obviously, that is going unseen is the ones now that people now need to realise about.
04:05And obviously, you know, this is what this is about. Now, make a statement and say,
04:09we've had enough of crime. That's against us at the museum, but also the city.
04:14We now, you know, we need to make a stance.