I think everyone is right to condemn this sort of behaviour as the details become more clear. It sounds to me like this was an opportunist theft where the thief might have been tempted by the value of that much shiny gear. I doubt this was planned otherwise the perpetrators wouldn't choose a Sunday afternoon when there were more cavers about than almost any other time of the day, week or year. It does also seem likely from the above posts that the thieves were disturbed mid crime. It could be possible that they hid or dumped the booty on the way out - not wishing to get caught on Kingsdale lane. Has anyone looked up the inlets for example?
I heard it said elsewhere that this might be some sort of vendetta or sabotage against the Eurospeleo event. Apart from being paranoid there is nothing to support this and it was CRO gear after all said and done. Thefts like this do happen from time to time but fortunately are rare. The evidence may suggest that these were cavers, and there are bad apples in all walks of life, but lets remember that there are far more good cavers out there doing extraordinary things, helping people and communities, such as the CRO. Let's not allow these rare bad events to colour our enjoyment of the caves or taint our fun at events like Eurospeleo.
May the Darklord have mercy on their souls..
I heard it said elsewhere that this might be some sort of vendetta or sabotage against the Eurospeleo event. Apart from being paranoid there is nothing to support this and it was CRO gear after all said and done. Thefts like this do happen from time to time but fortunately are rare. The evidence may suggest that these were cavers, and there are bad apples in all walks of life, but lets remember that there are far more good cavers out there doing extraordinary things, helping people and communities, such as the CRO. Let's not allow these rare bad events to colour our enjoyment of the caves or taint our fun at events like Eurospeleo.
May the Darklord have mercy on their souls..
