Gedling Police inspector Chris Pearson provides his latest update on policing activities that have taken place across the borough over the last month...
Speeding
A number of speeding and road safety operations were carried out during December and
this was heavily linked to community feedback and the national Christmas Drink/Drug
driving campaign. Policing activity was supported by both Operation Reacher and the
Neighbourhood Policing teams.
On Monday, December 21, the Arnold neighbourhood team supported this work with an evening of action in the Gedling North area. During the evening officers attended the A60 Mansfield Road at Ravenshead and Redhill, Rolleston Drive in Arnold and Plains Road Mapperley. 35 vehicles were stopped by officers for a variety of road traffic offences from Speeding through to defective vehicle lights. All motorists were breathalysed in line with the national campaign with all passing the test. One motorist was given advice after alcohol was detected in their breath sample.
A speeding operation was also carried out on Main Road, Ravenshead however there were no drivers that were found to be exceeding the speed limit.
Over on the Gedling South area the Carlton Neigbourhood team have continued to support
this priority with speeding operations carried out on Spring lane, Lambley and the A612
Nottingham Road at Burton Joyce. Four motorists were issued with Traffic Offence Reports
for excessive speed on Spring Lane with the highest recorded speed being 65mph.
Over on the A612 a further three motorists were dealt with for excessive speed with the
highest recorded speed being 48mph. In addition to this all drivers stopped were given
advice and a briefing as to why this work is taking place across the Gedling Borough.
The Operation Reacher team also supported the Road Safety Agenda during December
with vehicles seized for no insurance, Tax or MOT. Two drivers also tested positive for
drugs at the roadside after stop/checks on Coppice Road and Valley Road, Carlton. A driver
was also arrested after they tested positive for Cannabis following a vehicle stop on Killisick Road in Arnold.
Speeding will remain a priority for us and we are now planning further enforcement activity
for January 2021.
Drug Supply
Drug Supply remains a priority for us at Gedling as this has a real impact on our
communities and is linked to a number of serious crimes across the area.
The Operation Reacher team got December off to a good start when they assisted
with an investigation into the supply of controlled drugs across Nottinghamshire.
Warrants were executed in Gedling and Arnold resulting in the arrest of four men
aged between 32 and 40 for conspiracy to supply controlled drugs.
On December 9, the Reacher team stopped a vehicle on Valley Road, Carlton whilst on
patrol. The driver was arrested having failed a roadside drugs wipe test. A search of
the vehicle resulted in the seizure of Cash, Class B drugs and dealer bags. On 11th
December a male was also arrested in Arnold after the Op Reacher team spotted a
vehicle linked to the supply of controlled drugs. A search of the vehicle resulted in
the recovery of a large amount of cash. It is suspected that this is the proceeds of
drugs supply offences and the investigation is continuing.
Officers also recovered around 200 cannabis plants from a residential property on
Mapperley Plains following joint work with Western Power. On the evening of
December 29, entry was gained to the address where a cannabis grow was located. This
investigation is very much ongoing but this find has resulted in the seizure and destruction of a large amount of cannabis.
Burglary
Residential Burglary remains a priority within the Gedling Borough.
During the month of December burglary fell by 44% compared to offences recorded in November 2020.
Overall, burglary has reduced significantly this year due to COVID19 and a number of
arrests carried out by local officers and the County Burglary team.
The Carlton area remains of particular focus following a number of sheds being targeted. The latest being on Lavender Crescent, Carlton with bikes stolen overnight. Officers also
attended a report of a burglary on Standhill Road, Carlton on 30th December 30, which
resulted in the arrest of a 17 year old male for Burglary. CID colleagues are
investigating this offence.
A number of arrests have also been made in relation to a car key burglary in Woodthorpe on December 8.
In the run up to Christmas, an evening of action was carried out by Operation Reacher
officers to deter burglary offences with Christmas presents a target for offenders.
Operation Reacher
The Op Reacher team continue to go from strength to strength and have now been
working in the Gedling Borough since the end of January 2020. During that time the
team have produced some excellent results and I wanted to share an end of year
summary of their activity.
As of the end of December 2020 the team have now:
- Carried out 38 warrants authorised by Magistrates in order to search for
- controlled drugs. These have been obtained following intelligence gained from
- the local community.
- Searched a further 59 properties or vehicles linked to suspects in custody
- Made 100 individual drug seizures whilst on patrol across the area
- Seized 55 vehicles and issued 90 Traffic Offence Reports for offences ranging from Speeding to no insurance – 5 of the vehicles recovered were stolen and have been returned to their owners
- Seized 34 Weapons
- Seized over £250k in suspected criminal money
- In addition to this the team have played a key role in the policing of the coronavirus regulations in Gedling and even found time to help distribute Easter Eggs to the local community in the early stages of the Pandemic.
The team are an excellent addition to policing in Gedling and I know that their joint work with the Neighbourhood policing team and partners will only strengthen these results in 2021.
Incident Updates
In the run up to Christmas we saw an increase in reported Shop Theft across the Gedling Borough with two hotspots identified as the Victoria Retail Park and Arnold Town Centre.
The Neighbourhood policing team carried out a number of proactive policing operations working together with Gedling CCTV and local retailers. As a result of this a 39-year-old male was identified as having committed a number of shop theft offences as well as having assaulted a shop worker who challenged him. The Gedling neighbourhood team investigated these offences resulting in 8 charges and the male being recalled to prison in time for Christmas. We are continuing to work together with local retailers in order to set up shop watch schemes which will see the sharing of information around shop theft offenders.
We are also investigating after a male was assaulted with a baseball bat in Arnold on the evening December 21. The victim had his mobile phone and car keys stolen in the incident which happened on Galway Road. Thankfully the victim’s injuries are minor and we are now carrying out a thorough investigation to try and identify those responsible. If you have any information then please let us know quoting incident 625 of 21/12.
Coronavirus
We are continuing to work closely with our partners in order to police the coronavirus regulations.
Tier 4 has now increased the restrictions locally and we are still taking the proportionate approach of Engage, Explain and Encourage where appropriate. However sadly a number of fixed penalty notices have been issued following house parties that have taken place over Christmas and New Year.
I would urge you all to follow the local restrictions so that we can protect our NHS and save lives. We will not hesitate to take action where necessary as it is vital to protect our local communities.
If you are unsure of the regulations then they can be found online at https://www.gov.uk/guidance/tier-4- stay-at-home
It’s a shame that Gedling borough and notts cc are not actively seeking methods to reduce traffic in the borough. The traffic levels are helping to make Gedling a VERY unpleasant place to live. Pavement parking is an increasing problem. Gedling are talking of a fourth road crossing for the river Trent. This like the Gedling relief road will just being even more traffic into the area. The exact opposite of what we should be doing.