It seems that no matter what big city you live in these days, break-ins and burglaries have become a part of life. With neighborhood apps like NextDoor becoming more popular than ever, you might hear about them every day, depending on where you live.
Well, apparently, not even multi-millionaire celebrities are immune to these common break-ins, even with their top-of-the-line security systems.
After a number of home invasions at his $60 million home, Simon Cowell has decided to sell it off and leave.
The music industry mogul is said to be worth around $600 million, and at 63 years old, he has lived in central London for most of his life. However, he recently decided to move out of his Holland Park home, telling his close friends that he no longer felt safe in the city.
The home sale, according to the Daily Mail, was finalized a few days ago. Cowell has owned his mansion home for more than 16 years, though he, his wife Lauren, and his son Eric decided that it was time to start a new chapter out in the English countryside.
The decision came after last month when a gang of criminals sold a copy of Simon Cowell’s front door lock to another gang of thieves in the area after he had just spent around $600,000 for new security.
In his latest court statement, Cowell noted that the event left him fearful for what might happen next time people break in.
This isn’t the first time the record label CEO head faced security threats in his home. In 2012, he had to get ahold of his security after a woman carrying a brick got into one of his bathrooms.
Cowell said that he was in his bedroom watching TV when he heard a loud banging noise coming from the bathroom. After discovering the 29-year-old woman, Leanne Zaloumis, in his bathroom, she was reprimanded and taken to the Notting Hill police station.
According to the court, the charge that Zaloumis faced was the intent to inflict bodily harm at the time of the burglary. Her weapon of choice was a broken house brick.
During the eight-minute court hearing, Zaloumis showed no remorse for what she had done and even came into court wearing a baggy gray sweatshirt with unkempt hair.
“The whole incident was absolutely shocking to me. The fact that someone can even obtain the security code on my home and use it to rob me and my family is awful,” Cowell said. “Even thinking of doing something like this is reckless and dangerous.”
“People who go out and rob other people’s homes don’t even consider the consequences and how badly it could affect the people that live there,” he added.
According to the Daily Mail, Cowell noted that he has also become fearful of his neighborhood’s general safety, especially with the recent rise in street gang activity.
