A GRANDFATHER says “the world has gone mad” after police came to his house to retrieve a football kicked into his garden by his neighbours’ children.

But police say their intervention came after a series of call-outs over a long-running neighbour dispute — and their aim was to prevent it escalating into something more serious.

The Bolton News:

Police became involved when Mr Walsh and his wife Sue, both aged 61, failed to return a ball for several weeks after it was kicked into their garden by the children living next door.

Mr Walsh, of Sandileigh Drive, off Crompton Way, said: “If the children came and asked for the ball we would give it back — I am not a ball kidnapper.

“About a week went by and we got a note from the police saying they wanted a quick chat.

“Then another note came from police — I couldn’t believe it. I did nothing about it.”

Mr Walsh said the police then came to “liberate” the ball, but he refused to hand it back, saying the owners should just ask for it.

He claims police said this would technically be classed as theft.

He added: “The world has gone mad. I cannot believe police got involved in getting a ball back.”

Police say they were not called to retrieve the ball, however, but to deal with an ongoing neighbour dispute over parking and CCTV that has already lasted about six weeks.

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Insp Wayne Readfern said: “It is not the first and certainly not the last time we will deal with neighbours arguing over parking and CCTV.

“Neighbourhood staff, especially the PCSOs, get involved in neighbour disputes several times a day.

“It would be great if everybody could solve their problems between themselves without involving the police, or newspapers.”

He said neighbour disputes can escalate, citing a recent incident in Breightmet in January in which 89-year-old William Dutton was charged with slashing a neighbour’s throat with a kitchen knife.

Dutton was later cleared in court.

Mr Walsh’s next door neighbour, Angela Nealon, said she had no choice but to go to the police, and she was relieved when her youngest son, Mason, aged seven, got his ball back.

Police handed it back to him after spending about 20 minutes at Mr Walsh’s address.

Mrs Nealon, aged 41, said: “We had a dispute with Mr and Mrs Walsh a while ago so we don’t speak to them any more.

“When Mason’s ball went over, we couldn’t go round and get it ourselves and Mr Walsh didn’t throw it back.

“This has gone on far too long — it’s ridiculous.”