THE NEW chief inspector of Thurrock police has responded to YT’s report regarding the parlous state of crime detection in Thurrock.
Chief Inspector Ben Hodder said:
“Firstly I would like to re-assure the public that offences of this nature are taken extremely seriously by Essex Police and our partners. I am more than aware of the effect that being a burglary victim has and the serious nature of this crime. My first priority is, and always will be, around stopping this type of crime occurring.
By preventing and denying criminals the ability to commit this crime we can further reduce the number of burglary offences within the district. Thurrock remains a very safe district and there is a proven track record in relation to crime reduction.
In the last five years all crime has gone down 30 per cent which means 2,851 fewer victims of crime. Over the same period burglary has gone down 9.5 per cent. On average the district has around two burglaries of people’s homes a day and my team is committed to reducing this even further.
My next priority is ensuring if one of these terrible crimes does occur we will do all we can to bring the offender to justice; this both denies them the ability to commit further crimes and gives closure to the victim.
I would also like to reassure the public that when a burglary is reported it will always be given a priority response that means attendance will be as soon as possible and in all cases within an hour. Every burglary will always be investigated by Detectives from the Criminal Investigations Department (CID).
The officers initially attending will conduct numerous enquiries to try and identify the suspect, these include house to house, CCTV and other relevant enquires. Specialist Scenes Of Crimes Officers will attend and attempt to obtain forensic material and this will be analysed against the police database.
When a suspect is identified every effort is made to arrest them as quickly as possible . Unsolved crimes remain on file and are routinely reviewed and efforts made to seek further evidence to enable them to be progressed.
Essex police use a wide range of tactics to capture burglars and dwelling burglary is a priority focus for the CID covering the Thurrock area.
We want to make sure that those responsible know what it feels like to be arrested for this crime so that they are left in no doubt that we aim to remove them from the streets.
Our intention is to create a hostile environment making it difficult for burglars to operate. The CID has a strong relationship with other teams, both within and outside of Essex police, to ensure that this pressure is maintained upon them. I would continue to ask for the support of the local community to provide intelligence on those committing such acts or not to accept any items that they believe to be stolen
Thurrock has a strong community spirit and I firmly believe that the answer to solving many of these crimes lies within the local community. I would urge anyone with any information to contact either Essex Police directly on 101 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111
A concern I have working for a Forum is the growing trend for people not to report crime – despite a number of police campaigns in my own area Little Thurrock Rectory to keep people aware of crime patterns.
Particular areas of non reporting
a. Minor Damage to property.
b. Minor fracas with youth / other no physical contact.
c. Minor burglary.
d. Trespass with damage.
e. Any incidents in Grays Town Centre. (Few use Town after dark).
We all know cuts will have an effect but ensuring that crime is reported needs urgent review, If the Police cannot cope the public needs to know. Reporting that crime is down but now knowing that detection is falling as well, is something that must stop. Net Crime (Committed vs Detection) figures need to be made available monthly even though the trends may show a need for urgent Police resources during this time of great budget review.
http://www.police.uk/