Heavy metal crackdown

Sep 4 2008 by Paul James, The Journal

ACRACKDOWN on metal thieves in Northumberland was announced by county police chiefs yesterday.

Following a spate of incidents, officers will be patrolling scrapyards and other “key sites” over the coming month, and vehicles will be stopped and checked.

Police will also be giving advice to churches and the owners of other “vulnerable” buildings to help them prevent thieves targeting them.

While the targeting of metal thieves will take place across the county, a simultaneous operation will focus on violent crime and car crime in the Ashington, Blyth and Bedlington areas.

Extra patrols will be on the streets in the south east corner of the county, especially at key times when the majority of incidents occur.

Officers will also be speaking with pubs, clubs and off-licences to drum home their responsibilities, and will be highlighting alternative activities to youngsters who hang around the streets.

Other agencies, including Customs and Excise and the Vehicle Operators Service Agency, will be drafted in to help stop and check vehicles which may be used in metal thefts.

This summer, officers said stopping thieves looking for copper and lead was one of their main priorities across Northumberland after a number of incidents, blamed on rising metal prices.

On July 16, the bronze bust of Lord Matthew White Ridley was reported missing from its plinth at the entrance to Ridley Park, in Blyth.

Other buildings targeted for metal this year in the county include St Mary’s Hospital in Stannington and the Stocksfield war memorial, and across the North East a number of churches have had metal stolen.

A similar crackdown in May saw police arrest 34 people and recover a quarter of a ton of metal, mainly lead.

Yesterday, Chief Inspector David Charlton, who is leading the operation, appealed for anyone with information on metal thieves to contact his team.

He said: “Northumberland does have a low crime rate compared to other areas, but there is always room for improvement.

“A small minority are responsible for a disproportionate amount of crime and these are the people we are going after.

“Throughout September, people can expect to see more officers out and about and we want people to come forward and tell us if they have any informa- tion about people committing crime.”