A TEENAGER who confronted a burglar she came face-to-face with says she feels let down by the police as criminal activity continues in the area.

Katy Harrison, aged 19, fell asleep in her living room and woke up to find a man in the room last year.

She said: “I woke up from the cold. When I woke up he was in my face. So, I shouted and ran after him.”

The man, who is believed to have had an accomplice, stole a laptop and mobile phone.

Police attended within an hour of receiving reports of the burglary in Cemetery Road, Kearsley, in August last year, shortly after 6:20am.

However, Miss Harrison said that officers did not take her statement and lost CCTV footage she gave them.

She saw who she believes to be the burglar in the area a month after the incident which prompted her mother to confront him. Miss Harrison said: “I was going to Asda in Farnworth and I saw him. I told my mum and three weeks later they were in Farnworth again.”

Since the incident, her two younger sisters have moved in with their father in Chorley because they were so shaken up by the burglary and say they do not feel protected by police.

The teenager, who lives with her mother, said that a similar incident took place two months ago when an elderly neighbour who has dementia was burgled.

Miss Harrison said that criminal activity in the area is rife and claims some have seen people walking around with knives and machetes.

She said: “The police have been informed many times of people in my area and all you get given is a crime reference and the case is closed. What good is a crime reference when no crime is being investigated?”

She added that only her local PCSO has been helpful and supported the family.

A GMP spokesman said: “The victim provided the name of a potential suspect but following enquiries it was established that the individual could not have been involved. The victim was informed and then provided a second name which officers again fully investigated.

“Alongside this, further lines of inquiry were carried out, including house-to-house inquiries, but an offender was never identified. Detectives have to allocate resources in the most efficient way possible to protect our communities. In this case it was decided that due to there being no further credible lines of inquiry to pursue that would lead to a successful conviction, the investigation wouldn’t be continued at that time.

“These decisions are not made lightly or in isolation and are considered in the context of all ongoing investigations but should any new credible information come to light, it will be assessed and treated extremely seriously.”