Police have recovered a crossbow and made two arrests during a proactive operation to tackle burglary and travelling criminals in Gedling borough.
Officers carried out uniformed and covert activities in a day of action to target potential burglars and disrupt criminals using the roads, following recent reports of burglaries in areas including Carlton, Porchester and Netherfield.
Teams of officers covered Carlton, Gedling, Netherfield and Colwick in cars as well as patrolling on bikes and on foot yesterday (Thursday, September 3).
Neighbourhood officers were supported by Gedling’s dedicated Operation Reacher Team and volunteer Special Constables.
A 44-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of shop theft after plain clothes officers spotted him near to a recent reported theft and directed uniformed colleagues to detain him.
He has since been interviewed at a local station and summonsed to attend court at a later date. A 73-year-old man was also arrested on suspicion of possessing an offensive weapon after a crossbow and arrows were found in his car after his vehicle was stopped in Netherfield. He remains in custody while the circumstances are investigated.
Throughout the evening over 20 vehicles were stopped. One was seized for having no insurance and a further four traffic offence reports were given to drivers for various offences including no insurance and failing to wear a seat belt, with words of advice issued to a number of motorists for defective lights and excessively tinted windows.
Officers were promptly on scene at a report of a possible burglary in progress which was investigated and found not to be as initially reported but ongoing support was provided to the resident by the attending officers.
Throughout the evening officers also engaged with groups of teenagers in the street and local parks, ensuring they were safe and to discourage antisocial behaviour issues.
Inspector Chris Pearson, Neighbourhood Policing Inspector responsible for local policing in the Gedling borough area, said: “I’m pleased that this day of action was so positive.
“We undertake operations like this to disrupt criminals and target offenders and also to gather intelligence to help us to tackle those issues which our communities have told us matter most to them.
“As the operation shows we treat burglary, drug use and supply, antisocial behaviour and road safety seriously and will take positive action to target and disrupt offenders involved in criminal activity.
“Such criminality will not be tolerated and we will continue to carry out uniformed and covert operations such as this over the coming months to ensure that burglars and drug offenders know that we will catch up with them and do everything in our power to bring them to justice.
“Part of the reason that we are able to carry out proactive days of action such as this is because of the reports of suspicious activity we receive from the public. I’d urge anyone who sees someone, or a vehicle, acting suspiciously on their street to call us on 101 so that we can build a comprehensive picture of what is happening in our areas.
“I would like to thank our local communities for their support – operations such as the one yesterday can’t happen without it.
“It’s essential that people continue to tell us about the issues in their areas – whether this relates to suspected burglary or drug offences, or other related criminal activity.
“If you have concerns in your area I’d urge you to come forward and talk to us in confidence.
“Anyone with information should call Nottinghamshire Police on 101, or contact Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111 or by visiting https://crimestoppers-uk.org/”
