A WOMAN claims her neighbor had 500 bicycles dumped in her backyard garden, causing rats to enter her home.
Colleen Butler, 53, says her inattentive neighbor moved in next door eight years ago in Littlemore, Oxford, before he started hoarding bikes.
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She has since had to deal with a rat infestation and her mental health has deteriorated as a result.
Colleen said: “I had rats, I had arguments with him and other neighbors – my fence was blown off and people were rude to me because they thought the bikes belonged to me.
“It caused me so much anxiety.
“I called the local council about rat problems caused by bikes and ended up paying for the pest control myself – the council told me that ‘rats don’t nest on bikes’.
Colleen claims that she originally reported the huge mountain of bikes four years ago, and her neighbor claimed they were being shipped overseas.
The gigantic collection is so huge that it can be seen on Google Earth from a bird’s eye view.
“I started reporting on his decaying bike collection four years ago, but this has been going on for about five years now.
“I made the first report because the number of bikes was just ridiculous.
“They should be at least 500 people. When I spoke to him, he said that they were going to be sent to Africa for needy children, but as you can see, they never went to Africa.
“Bicycles are brought in by vans, and people bring them here both at night and during the day.
The terrified resident said she was so worried about the pile seen from space that she had to get a guard dog and said her neighbor was having trouble with the police.
She added: “Three years ago my dad gave me a dog for my protection, I was so scared.
“I feel like the only one fighting him. They all talk about him, but I think they are afraid of him – he captured people because he thinks they are taking pictures.
“One neighbor had her bikes stolen and she ran into him and he just pushed her. He tried to intimidate me, but he can’t – he can’t intimidate me.”
Ms. Butler continued: “I have spoken to him, but everything he tells you does not come true.
“He lives in the country of cuckoo clouds. I have struggled with this for four years and still do. It devalues my house – who wants to buy my house with all this next door?
“At the time of his arrest, I thought: “Great, finally something is being done.”
“I was in my bedroom and I looked out the window and there were a lot of police there. I heard the police say to open the door, but he ignored them.
“They told him to move away from the door and went in – after 10 minutes he was gone.
“It’s so frustrating because nothing has been done – I’m afraid that now these stolen bikes have been taken away and the rest will remain there.
“I do not want it. I want them to leave. The garden is for children to play.
Ms. Butler, whose modern, cozy garden is filled with dog toys and a manicured wooden patio, is completely at odds with her neighbor.
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