A Gedling police team have been praised for their involvement in an investigation into an alleged conspiracy to smuggle drugs into a Nottinghamshire prison.
Four warrants were executed by Gedling’s Operation Reacher team on August 11, in the Bestwood, Top Valley, Strelley and Aspley areas, resulting in four arrests.
A further two warrants were carried out at addresses in Bestwood and Bulwell on 15 September, resulting in two further arrests.
The warrants were carried out thanks to a joined-up Nottinghamshire Police approach and good teamwork involving Gedling’s Operation Reacher team, County CID, Tactical Support Group officers and the City Neighbourhood Team all working together.
PICTURED: Operation Reacher officers carrying out a warrant at a property earlier in the year (PHOTO: Notts Police)
The investigation, under the banner of Operation Oregon, relates to an alleged conspiracy to supply drugs into HMP Ranby.
Shane Smith, 34, of HMP Moorland, Doncaster, is charged with causing someone to convey an article A item into prison. He appeared in court on 2 December and was remanded in custody and is next due to appear at Nottingham Magistrates’ Court on 7 January 2021.
Carla Fitzgerald, 27, of Basford Road, Basford, is charged with conveying an article A item into prison. She is due to appear at Nottingham Magistrates’ Court on 4 January 2021.
Detective Inspector Kim Binns said: “This has been a complex investigation with different departments across the force working together. I’m pleased that as a result of some really good work we’ve now been able to secure charges in relation to this ongoing investigation.
“I’d also like to commend the Gedling Operation Reacher team and their CID colleagues for their excellent work which has helped in building the case.”
A councillor is hoping to draw attention to the shocking state of roads in Gedling borough by creating digital artwork using pictures of potholes taken on his way to work.
Cllr Henry Wheeler, who represents Coppice Ward for Gedling Borough Council, used an app on his phone to create the digital artwork based around pothole pictures he had taken on his daily journey into work in Arnold.
Mr Wheeler told Gedling Eye: “I’ve done some pothole art that will hopefully will draw attention to the shocking state of our roads in Gedling borough, which are managed by Nottingham County Council. They have left our roads to fall into a shocking state of disrepair.”
Henry Wheeler is creating artwork using his phone and potholes to highlight the state of the borough’s roads. (IMAGE: Henry Wheeler)
“These are just a couple of the many potholes that I pass on my walk to work at school in the morning in Arnold.
“Pothole art might catch on in Gedling, there’s plenty of them knocking about they are starting to develop personalities of their own in a bid to get noticed before they cause serious damage to road users.
He added: “These have been reported, like many others, however many residents say that they have reported potholes and they still don’t get repaired, there are potholes everywhere.”
Are potholes a problem on your street? Have a moan in the comments below.
If you want to create digital artwork using potholes in your neighbourhood, send to our newsdesk (news@gedlingeye.co.uk) and we’ll feature them on the site.
Police have made two arrests and seized drugs and cash after stopping suspicious vehicles in Arnold and Carlton.
The arrests were made by Gedling borough’s dedicated Operation Reacher team on Monday (December 7) and Tuesday (8) evening.
A Gedling Police spokesman said: “On Monday, officers spotted a Volkswagen Golf being driven to a poor standard on Coppice Road .
“They stopped the vehicle as they suspected the driver was under the influence of something.
“The driver passed a breath test but failed a drug wipe which tested positive for cocaine. Driver arrested and transported to Bridewell for a blood test before being released under investigation.
Officers in Carlton also stopped a vehicle on Tuesday night.
The spokesman added: “Officers stopped a Renault Clio on Valley Road in Carlton.
“The car smelt strongly of cannabis and following a search deal bags of cannabis and cash were found. The driver also failed a drug wipe.
“The driver was arrested by police and taken to the Bridewell where he was interviewed, blood test and released under investigation.
Nottinghamshire County Council has reassured residents in Gedling borough that they are ‘confident about their financial future’ and will be able to set a balanced budget for 2021-22.
The council has offered the reassurance following recent press reports relating to a Rapid Review of the financial position at Nottingham City Council.
Councils have also faced extreme financial pressures because of Coronavirus
Nottinghamshire County Council has faced COVID costs which have topped £66 million but stated that it was in a sound financial position pre pandemic so has weathered the storm better than most.
Councillor Richard Jackson, the County Council’s chairman of Finance and Major Contracts Committee, said a combination of prudent financial management, a good level of reserves, dialogue and lobbying with Government had resulted in the situation being better than first thought.
PICTURED: Councillor Richard Jackson
Councillor Jackson said: ““We’ve found innovative ways of saving the county council money in the past, and we’ll continue doing that in the future.
“I’m pleased we’ve been able to safeguard services this financial year and there are no significant service reductions planned for the next financial year, this is a situation as a Council we can be rightly proud of.”
Councillor Jackson added: “We will continue with our record-breaking schools building programme and the £20 million investment in our county’s roads as these are the things that matter to our residents.”
“There remains a great deal of uncertainty in council finances across the country, with several key Government acts still outstanding, including the social care green paper, the fair funding review and the comprehensive spending review.
The signs we’re receiving from Government on the spending review and on the settlement for next year are positive. Nottinghamshire County Council will therefore be setting a balanced budget for the next financial year.”
Inspector Chris Pearson has issued an update on how police are progressing in the fight against crime across Gedling borough.
Policing priority update
During November the Gedling Neighbourhood and Operation Reacher teams have continued their efforts around reducing drug supply and possession offences.
In early November the team executed a warrant on Manvers Street, Netherfield in relation to ongoing activity around ‘Operation Thistle’ which aims to target those supplying controlled drugs in the Netherfield area. A number of items were seized including a quantity of Class B controlled drugs.
During the national knife crime week of action (Operation Sceptre) warrants were also executed at residential properties on Flatts Lane, Calverton Birchfield Road, Arnold and Bond Street, Arnold. This resulted in the recovery of Class A drugs. Officers from Operation Reacher also arrested a male on Furlong Street, Arnold on 28th November when they came across a male believed to be in possession of controlled drugs. As a result a quantity of cannabis was recovered, along with a knife and cash. An 18-year-old male was charged with a number of offences and remanded in custody to appear at Nottingham Magistrates Court. Both teams have continued to patrol hot spot areas for drugs possession and this work will continue throughout December and into the New Year.
Police activity around Speeding has continued this month following reports from members of the public. Speed enforcement activity has taken place in the following areas:
Main Street, Calverton with three drivers being issued with Traffic Offence
reports for excessive speed
Main Road, Ravenshead with no speeding vehicles identified
Rolleston Drive and Arno Vale Road, Arnold with five drivers issued with Traffic
Offence reports for excessive speed
Bank Hill, Woodborough with three drivers being dealt with for excessive speed
the highest being 45mph in a 30mph zone
Spring Lane, Lambley with no speeding vehicles identified
Church Road, Burton Joyce with one driver dealt with for excessive speed
A612 Burton Joyce with nine drivers reported for excessive speed. Along
with this a further six drivers were dealt with for other road traffic offences
such as defective lights.
Main Road and Arnold Lane, Gedling with a number of drivers given warnings
This work is being supported by our Safety Camera team and we hope to have the Community Road Safety volunteers deployed as soon as it is safe to do so.
In terms of Burglary this remains a priority and in the run up to Christmas we will be carrying out additional patrols across the area.
November saw a slight increase in Residential Burglary offences with 2 additional crimes being recorded compared to October this year. Overall Burglary however has reduced by 42% so far this year due to COVID19 and a number of arrests made in relation to Burglary offences.
Throughout November there has been a slight increase in sheds being broken into around the Carlton area (Second Avenue, Cornhill Road, Standhill Road) and the these offences are under investigation with officers viewing CCTV and carrying out house to house enquiries.
A residential dwelling was also targeted on Russet Avenue, Carlton with damage caused to the front door.
Our Policing Priorities will be refreshed at the end of December. I would encourage you to complete the #Whatmatters Survey which can be found on our website at www.nottinghamshire.police.uk/whatmatters so that we can ensure that our priorities address community concerns.
Operation Sceptre
In early November, the team were involved in a week of action to tackle knife crime which is known as ‘Operation Sceptre’. This is a national week of action aimed at targeting those believed to be carrying knives in the community. The week of action also focuses on delivering education around the risks involved in carrying knives.
During the week of action Gedling officers conducted searches of open spaces including local parks to check for hidden knives, targeted known offenders and worked to locate and arrest individuals who had failed to attend court in relation to weapons offences.
PICTURED: Police carried out searches of open spaces looking for knives
We also visited local schools and gave education inputs on the dangers of carrying knives. The Op Reacher team were involved in carrying out a number of warrants with force resources such as the Tactical Support Group which resulted in the seizure of weapons and drugs that will now be destroyed.
During the week of action, two males were arrested for failing to appear at Court in relation to weapons offences. This included a 38-year-old male from the Calverton area and a 53-year-old male. He handed himself in after enquiries by the Operation Reacher team.
Officers from Carlton also recovered a lock knife after a group of suspicious males made off from them in the Netherfield area. After a short chase two males were stop searched and the knife was found discarded nearby. An 18 year old male was interviewed in relation to the knife and both males stopped were also issued with fixed penalty notices for breaches of the Coronavirus Regulations. Overall it was a successful week of action and we will repeat this in March 2021.
Incident updates
The investigation into a Stabbing on Bond Street, Arnold on November 11, is still ongoing.
Thankfully the victims injuries are not life altering.
Three males have now been arrested in relation to this incident and remain on police bail at this time whilst the investigation continues.
I want to be clear that knife crime and violence has absolutely no place in our communities and we are working with our partners including Gedling Borough Council to target those responsible.
The Gedling Neighbourhood team and Operation Reacher are continuing their patrols together with the Neighbourhood Wardens and we will take robust action around those responsible for this type of behaviour. If you have any information in relation to this incident please contact us quoting police incident 739 11/11/2020.
We have also been investigating two Robberies at ‘McColls’ convenience store on Westdale Lane, Gedling.
The first offence was back on October 27, with the second robbery taking place on the morning of November 19, 2020.
I’m pleased to report that a 39 year old male has now been arrested and charged with these offences. He is due to appear at Nottingham Crown Court.
Coronavirus Update
I wanted to touch on our continued response to the COVID19 pandemic.
Throughout November, officers have been carrying out additional patrols and duties in order to police the COVID regulations.
We have responded to concerns around individuals not self-isolating and were called to bonfire gatherings in early November which resulted in a number of Fixed Penalty notices being issued for breaches of the regulations.
In the run up to Christmas we will be deploying additional officers to help with the policing of the ‘Tier3’ regulations.
We also attended a number of incidents at the ‘Mustard Seed’ Café on Main Road, Gedling. A number of incidents were linked to the Coronavirus regulations and reports of anti-social behaviour resulted in us having to take steps to protect the public and local community. We supported colleagues at Gedling Borough Council in applying for a closure order that was granted at the Magistrates Court.
A popular play area in Arnold is to get a £100,000 revamp thanks to external funding.
The Killisick Recreational Ground will be improved thanks to funding from FCC Communities foundation, a not-for-profit business that awards grants for community, conservation and heritage projects from funds donated by waste and resource management company FCC Environment through the Landfill Communities Fund. FCC Communities Foundation will be providing a grant total of £100,000.
The funding bid was made jointly by Gedling Borough Council and the The Friends of Killisick Park, a local residents’ community group who undertook community consultation and identified a strong community need for the project. Work on the park is expected to start in the spring and should be completed by summer 2020.
Cheryl Raynor, FCC Communities Foundation Local Grant manager said: “We are really pleased to be supporting the Borough Council and the Friends of Group to help bring this project to fruition, this is a fantastic facility for local people and we look forward to work starting on site.”
Natalie Drewry, Chair of The Friends of Killisick Park said: “We are absolutely delighted to have secured this funding with the council from FCC Communities for the new play area. We have worked hard to get the application approved and we are really happy that the park will get a much-needed refurbishment. This will make a real difference to the families who use the park and I am sure the children will be over the moon to see the new equipment installed in the summer.”
Deputy Leader of Gedling Borough Council, Councillor Michael Payne said: “This is fantastic news for the families who use the play area at Killisick Recreation Ground. This funding from FCC Communities will make a big difference to the area and I very much look forward to seeing what the new play park will look like. I would like to thank our staff at Gedling Borough Council and the Friends of Killisick Park who have worked together to make this bid and, of course, to FCC Communities for providing the funding. One of the council’s priorities is to enhance our parks and open spaces and provide an attractive environment that local people can enjoy.”
Gedling MP Tom Randall has told Nottingham City Council that people across the borough are feeling ‘immense frustration and anger’ over their decision to allow this year’s Christmas market to go ahead – despite the area being in tier 3 restrictions.
The market was suspended after 24 hours, before being scrapped altogether, after pictures showed huge crowds of people, with little or no social distancing evident.
In a letter to City Council leader David Mellen, sent yesterday (December 7), Mr Randall wrote: “Who decided that a helter-skelter, a Ferris wheel and a Christmas market were appropriate for a Tier 3 area?
“This weekend, I have received dozens of e-mails, as well as tweets and Facebook comments, from my constituents complaining about Nottingham City Council’s decision to hold a Christmas market in the Old Market Square.
“Saturday’s market was described as ‘rammed’.
“We know the problem that we face: rates of Covid cases amongst the over-60s, while falling, remain high, as are the number of local hospital beds occupied by Covid patients. These are the reasons why Nottingham, and its suburbs, have been put into Tier 3 restrictions.
“You will understand the immense frustration and anger of owners of hospitality businesses in Gedling, who have been forced to close their business, while watching hundreds flock to your Christmas market. You will also understand their worry that, if your market helped to spread COVID, the lifting of those restrictions could be delayed further.”
PICTURED: Loxley House
Mr Randall has now asked for answers from the council over their decision to hold the event and also about the safety measures that were meant to be in place.
Nottingham City Council’s Dave Trimble, who is responsible for major events in the city, has since issued a public apology, calling the decision to hold the Christmas market ‘a mistake’.
He said: “I think hindsight is a wonderful thing, and given what we know now, absolutely we definitely got it wrong, and I’m very very sorry for that.
“Certainly anything else that happens during this time we will certainly not be putting any new events on.
“The market started off quite well, but during the afternoon and early evening it went wrong.
“There were three things that went wrong: there was the food offer – with the restaurants being closed, a lot of people went there at the same time; the opening up of non-essential shops across the country – so there was a lot of pent-up demand there, we had taken the view that with all the other shops being open the market would be a part of that; and the third one was a really selfish group of around 200 people who gathered at the council house, and decided to have a party.
“What we had to do is act as quickly as possible, and we reacted by announcing we wouldn’t be opening it the next day, and quickly after that we decided we would be closing it for the whole duration.”
Gedling and Sherwood MPs Tom Randall and Mark Spencer have vowed to play their part in “levelling up” their areas of Gedling borough as part of the Chancellor’s latest Spending Review.
The MPs’ pledge comes in response to a letter sent over the weekend by Gedling Borough Council leaders to Chancellor Rishi Sunak.
In the letter, councillors John Clarke and Michael Payne called the chancellor not to overlook the borough when allocating money from his new £4bn local ‘Levelling Up’ Fund.
The government fund has been set up to provide cash to local areas which councils can then use for infrastructure improvements.
Two of the MPs representing parts of the borough, Tom Randall and Mark Spencer, today sent a letter of response to the council and committed to support any bid for cash.
Gedling leader John Clarke, left and deputy leader Michael Payne, right wrote to the Chancellor about his Levelling Up fund (Credit: Joseph Raynor)
In the letter they wrote: “As you will be aware, the list of allocations for the Towns Fund were finalised in September 2019 before Tom was Gedling’s Member of Parliament and while we share your disappointment that Gedling Borough Council’s bid was not successful on this occasion, we look forward to working with the Council in securing funding from additional schemes to improve Gedling Borough.
“Across the Sherwood Constituency, Mark has been working with another Council on grouping 3 larger villages together to bid for money to be shared appropriately.
“We would like to point out that to date we have not been asked by the Council to support and help any bids across the Borough of Gedling.
“We both look forward to working with the Council, residents ofGedling Borough and the Government to secure investment from the Levelling Up Fund into local projects that will improve the Borough.
“We also look forward to hearing from you if you require any letters of support, help and assistance or joint visits to support any town or village within the Borough of Gedling.”
In the letter the council listed a number of projects they want financial support for including a Fourth Trent Crossing and regeneration of Arnold town centre.
Staff working for clothing retailer Peacocks in Arnold could be handed a lifeline if a management buyout of the clothing chain wins approval.
The chain was placed into administration last month, with the future of the store in Arnold now up in the air.
Posters were seen advertising a ‘closing down’ sale at the Front Street store over the weekend.
However, a proposed management buy-out would secure the future of the company along with its 4,908 staff and 470 stores across the UK.
The bid from a senior eCommerce manager at Peacocks Stores Ltd in conjunction with a private investor, follows the announcement that Peacock’s parent company EWM Group had placed the company into the hands of administrators, FRP Advisory.
The management buyout proposal which sets out to purchase the full company, its employees and its stores, also promises to strengthen Peacocks digital offering with a clear plan of investment into developing the eCommerce element of the business.
A spokesman for the buyout team said: “The MBO team is confident that with the right investment, they can drive forward innovation, bring about brand recovery and achieve a quick return to financial sustainability.
“With plans for short-term investment coupled with longer-term reinvestment, they propose injecting a fresh sense of purpose into Peacocks, safeguarding its future in spite of the on-going challenges high street retailers across the UK are facing.”
A mystery artist has struck again, bringing Christmas cheer to the residents of Netherfield with their latest festive-themed crochet creation,
The post box outside the post office on Victoria Road was first decorated by the mystery knitter back in the summer lockdown, with a fetching wooly hat appearing on top of the box, to help shield it from the sun.
But as of this morning the hat has been replaced by the knitter’s latest creation and a mischievous elf and Grinch have now taken residence on top of the box.
PHOTO: Justin Doddy
PHOTO: Neil Slack
And this latest creation is proving a hit with people on the high street.
Margaret Adams, 62, from Carlton said: “It was lovely to see this this morning. We’ve had a tough year and it’s easy to forget it’s Christmas. This reminds you and who ever has done this is wonderful.”
Netherfield resident Anthony Banks said: “Whoever does this is doing it under the cover of darkness. It’s great for our town. It’s like having a Banksy as these knitted decorations just appear out of nowhere in the morning.”
