DON READ’S CRIME COLUMN – FEBRUARY 2010
The advice not to leave anything of value on view in your vehicle took on a new significance when a criminal gang transported £33 million worth of heroin in 13 cardboard boxes on the back seat of a car. One of the gang was under police surveillance and when the huge haul was transferred to another car at a service station on the M20, the police pounced.
Thirteen hundred police officers in an American city are to have cameras clipped to their helmets and switched on whenever they confer with a member of the public. This is to gather evidence of over zealous officers carrying out their duties.
A fall in crime on the Isle Of Man is being attributed to the fear of being sent to the only non-smoking prison in Europe. Meanwhile, New York is experiencing a big downturn in murders to 461 in 2009 (up to 27th December) from 2,245 in 1990. The NY police force numbers 34,000, down by 6,000 since 2001.
Feeling the pinch
Well, aren’t we all? Shopkeepers in particular are feeling it in more ways than one. In addition to lower turnover, the recession is responsible for an increase in shop lifting.
Shed alarms
Shed burglaries were virtually eliminated in some areas of West Bridgford when residents purchased shed alarms. Some alarms are still available from Neighbourhood Watch. Ask your nearest co-ordinator. They cost £8 and could save you becoming crime victim. Supposedly secured bikes are being stolen from gardens. Can’t be very secure if they are stolen.
Positive parking news
Good news if you park your car in a Nottingham City Centre car park. There were no thefts from cars parked in NCP-run car parks in the last three months of last year. This compares to 54 recorded thefts over the same period in 2008. This reduction is due largely to security patrols. In the past eight months vehicle crime in the city has fallen by more than 25%.
More on cars
Police in Dorset are clamping (no pun intended) down on drivers who fiddle with their CD players, talk/text on their mobiles, allow a rear seat passenger to not wear a seat belt and other infringements of driving protocol. This initiative is intended to reduce deaths on Dorset roads by one third.
Crime figures West Bridgford
Week ending: 19/12/09
Total reported crimes 25
Avoidable 18 = 72%
Week ending: 26/12/09
Total reported crimes 12
Avoidable 6 = 50%
Week ending: 2/1/10
Total reported crimes 29
Avoidable 11 = 38%
Week ending: 9/1/10
Total reported crimes 27
Avoidable 8 = 30%
Week ending: 16/1/10
Total reported crimes 21
Avoidable 16 = 76%
The ‘Avoidable’ crimes assessment is my own, based on crimes where access was by insecure doors, windows and possessions left on view in vehicles.
