Op Dynamo - the new Force wide burglary campaign
Officers lend a helping hand
Nearly one hundred and fifty people have been arrested for a range of burglary related offences during the first two months of a new force wide campaign to tackle burglary.
‘Operation Dynamo’ was launched at the beginning of August with all officers and members of staff being urged not to leave any stone unturned in their search for burglars. 78 people have been arrested for burglary related offences on the Counties’ BCU and a further 61 across the City BCU – a total of 139 arrests. Details of those individual arrests and charges are now being updated on the Force website every day.
A dedicated team of detectives has been established who will visit the victim of every burglary and ensure a robust investigation is carried out; exploring all possible avenues including forensic opportunities, CCTV, house to house enquiries and Automatic Number Plate Technology (ANPR). Known offenders across the city and county will receive regular visits from officers to ensure they are not offending and significant work is being done with Force’s ANPR cameras to deny criminals the use of Leicestershire and Rutland’s roads. Crime pattern analysis shows that 40% of burglaries which are committed on the Counties’ BCU are committed by people who live outside the County or Force area.
Officers will also be giving crime prevention advice to each victim of burglary and their immediate neighbours.
House burglaries across Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland are at a thirteen year low but year to date figures are showing a small increase of 3.4%, which is 44 offences more than this time last year. Senior officers are acutely aware that this could grow if they don’t take action now.
In support of Operation Dynamo, the Force is today (Monday 24th September) launching a new crime prevention campaign to encourage people to secure their property and to report any suspicious behaviour as quickly as possible. On many occasions the burglar doesn’t have to break in, so the Force is using new hand shaped leaflets which will be put through open windows and doors reminding people to help the police by keeping their homes secure.
Detective Chief Inspector Rich Ward, who is the Force’s lead for burglary, said; “Members of the public have a role to play in tackling crime and reducing the opportunities for burglars to break into their homes. On many occasions when we examine the crime reports we see the words ‘insecure entry’ which means the burglar has got into the property through an unlocked door or open window. We’re hoping to encourage people to do a quick security check of their homes before they go out, or go to bed, to eliminate those opportunities.
“We’ve also had a number of incidents where people have reported suspicious activity three or four days after the crime. We want to encourage people to call us the minute they see something out of the ordinary so we can respond quickly. This significantly increases our chances of catching those responsible.
“Our focus will remain on closely monitoring offenders who are already known to us and we will be paying a lot of attention to the roads through our county and city using modern technology to catch criminals driving through Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland.”
If you have information about any crime, you can contact us on 101*. In an emergency, where life is in danger or a crime is in progress, always call 999.
- Calls to 101 cost 15p for the entire call from both mobile phones and land lines
