Crime, Immobilise, Immobilize, Police

Police advise people to secure garden sheds

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The Leigh Journal has reported that POLICE are urging people to lock up sheds and garages to stop burglars using gardening equipment to break into homes.

They should also fit alarms and security lights.

The warning comes from PS Glynn Worley who said:

Thieves can easily use tools lying around to break into someone’s home.

The average shed or garage contains hundreds of pounds worth of equipment, and if they are insecure then offenders don’t even need to break into homes to steal valuables.

Police recommend that residents install shed alarms and security lights and security mark power tools, bikes and other valuable items with ultraviolet marker pens.

Items should be chained together using a high-security chain or cable and a good quality padlock, and the chain should be securely fastened to the wall or floor.

For even greater peace of mind, residents are urged to register valuable items on www.immobilise.com, free of charge.

To read the source article in full please go to: Leigh Journal

Bicycles, Crime, Immobilise, Immobilize, ImmobiTag, Police

Police advise cyclists to register bike details

The Manchester Evening News has recently reported on the ongoing problem of bicycle crime. In Wythenshawe PC Steve Le Cheminant has reunited hundreds of owners with their stolen cycles, in the last six months alone, Pc Le Cheminant has seized 55 bikes and arrested 15 people for theft and handling stolen goods.

The 55-year-old officer has even personally returned bikes before they have been reported stolen, after tracking down their owners through manufacturers and retailers.

Pc Le Cheminant, who has served for 29 years, said:

It is very satisfying returning them to their owners, they can’t thank you enough.

Some will not even report them stolen because they don’t think they have a chance of seeing them again.

But police do take bike theft seriously. A lot of burglars and other criminals, especially the younger generation, use them as a way to get around.

Sometimes searches of the offenders’ properties lead to more stolen goods, drugs and weapons.

We can trace the bike owners through crime reports on the police computers, although some make it difficult by just describing say an expensive bike as ‘a blue one’.

Around 430,000 bikes are stolen in Britain each year, usually sold for anything from £10 to more than £300. Cyclists can combat bike theft by recording the serial number, taking pictures, locking them with robust device such as a D-shaped shackle, and registering them and other valuables on immobilise.com.

Of the 55 bikes seized recently in Wythenshawe, Pc Le Cheminant has managed to return 45 to their owners.

Sergeant Jane Butler said:

As the arrests of Pc Le Cheminant demonstrate, we have already had a huge success in retrieving stolen cycles and we hope to build on this.

Residents can assist the police by making sure they secure their bikes when they are leaving them, even for just a short time.

If a thief spots a chance to steal something and get away they will.

To read the source article in full please go to: Manchester Evening Post

Crime, Immobilise, Mobile Phones, Police, Students

Police stress importance of registering property on Immobilise.com

Police in Cambridge have been encouraging residents and students to make use of the Immobilise property registration system. In response to recent arrests made following a series of muggings Police Liaision Officer Carol Langton said that students should not get “complacent” and should always “be aware of their surroundings and not advertise personal effects”.

She also stressed the importance of registering property on www.immobilise.com:

We’ve successfully tracked down the owners of items we’ve retrieved. It does actually work.

Detective Inspector Adam Gallop added:

We would ask people in the area to take sensible precautions with regard to personal safety: stick to well-lit areas, don’t carry large amounts of cash and don’t advertise the fact that you may be carrying items such as ipods and MP3 players.

To read the source article in full please go to: Varsity – Cambridge University’s Student Newspaper

Crime, Immobilise, Mobile Phones, Police

Middlesbrough Police purchase mobile phone scanners

The Middlesbrough Evening Gazette has reported that police have invested in new hi-tech equipment to help reunite lost or stolen mobile phones with their rightful owners.

In conjunction with the Safer Middlesbrough Partnership and Radio Tactics, police in Middlesbrough have bought two mobile phone scanners.

The handheld devices can pass over the barcode in the back of a registered handset and identify it there and then as lost or stolen.

Police urge mobile phone owners to register their handset on http://www.immobilise.com/which can store unique details of mobile phones, such as their IMEI and serial numbers.

The new scanners, which will link in with Immobilise, were piloted in Middlesbrough last summer with encouraging results. Thirty-seven mobiles were scanned and found to be stolen.

The property office and Middlesbrough CID will each have a scanner so that any mobiles recovered in hauls of suspected stolen goods or booked into found property can be checked – and immediately blocked if necessary while police trace the original owner.

Detective Chief Inspector Shane Sellers, Middlesbrough police crime manager, said:

The new scanners should help progress the positive work we have carried out so far. Officers have already visited and will continue to visit local stores and dealers to encourage them to promote the registration scheme at the point of sale.

Det Chief Insp Sellers said that together with the Safer Middlesbrough Partnership the police intended visiting schools to promote the initiative to younger phone owners who are often affected by theft.

He added:

Once again, I’d urge mobile phone owners to take just a few minutes to register their phones on the immobilise website – it’s easy, quick and free.

To read the source article in full please go to: Middlesbrough Evening Gazette

Bicycles, Crime, Immobilise, ImmobiTag, Mobile Phones, Police

Police arrest 25 and seize 100k stolen goods in burglary raids

The Croydon Guardian has reported that Police have arrested 25 suspects for residential burglary and seized £100,000 worth of property as part of Operation Spotlight.

Approximately 50 search warrants have been executed and £100,000 worth of property seized.

Recovered items include over 60 mobile phones, games consoles, laptops and computer games and jewellery such as watches and necklaces.

Detective Inspector Tim Evans, Croydon Police’s Priority Crime Unit, said:

We want to remind members of the public of the need to ensure that their homes are secure. Front doors, windows and conservatories should be securely locked and have sturdy frames.

He added:

We recommend that members of the public property mark their possessions and register them on immobilise.com. Registering items and uploading photos on the immobilise website increases the chances of being reunited with them should they be lost or stolen and come to the notice of the police.

To read the source article in full please go to: The Croydon Guardian

Bicycles, Crime, Immobilise, ImmobiTag, Police

Mark your bike if you want it back

Lucy Richards of the Basingstoke Gazette has highlighted the problem of police forces being unable to return recovered property to their owners.

Cyclists should help to combat crime by marking their bikes and recording the details.

The crimefighting call comes from PC Ian Castle, of Basingstoke police, who says many cyclists will need reminding after getting new bikes for Christmas.

He also stresses that if a bike is stolen, the owner should always inform the police because officers recover many which are never reunited with their owners.

The Winklebury beat officer said:

Lots of bikes that have been lost or stolen are found and recovered by police, but people don’t always report them stolen because they don’t think we will ever find them.

A lot of people don’t make a note of their serial number either, which makes it hard to identify the bike from others.

The serial number is usually found beneath the bottom bracket. Anyone unable to find it, should get the shop to record it on the invoice.

PC Castle said:

With the serial number, it is easier to catch the offenders and return the property and we do stop a lot of people on bikes. But unless we can identify a stolen bike, we can’t challenge someone.

Anyone wanting more information can contact PC Castle, at Basingstoke police station, on 0845 045 4545, or e-mail ian.castle@hampshire.pnn.police.uk. You can also register your bike’s details online at www.immobilise.com.

To read the source article in full please go to: Basingstoke Gazette

Bicycles, Crime, Immobilise, ImmobiTag, Mobile Phones, Police

York pupils secure their iPods

Nicola Fifield of The York Press has reported that valuable iPods and mobile phones owned by pupils at York schools are now more secure after being registered on Immobilise.Many pupils recorded their mobile phones and iPods on the database, and serveral more teenagers have ordered cycle tags for their bicycles.

If these belongings are subsequently stolen and recovered by police, the database allows police to track down their owners.

PCSO Louisa Warburton said:

The response from the children was great and we’re hoping that they will also take home the leaflets we gave them so that their parents can learn about the Immobilise website too.

It would be great if families could register all their expensive gear on the database because it is such a useful tool for us in helping to recover property that has been lost or stolen.

To read the source article in full please go to: The York Press

Bicycles, Crime, eBay, Immobilise, ImmobiTag, Mobile Phones, Police

BBC reports ‘Stolen goods’ fear in downturn

The BBC News website has reported that the economic downturn may tempt people to risk buying stolen goods.

Gwent Police said it had noticed a rise in thefts from cars in the run-up to Christmas and was concerned people may be led into making dodgy purchases.

The force is urging people to register valuables on a website so items stolen could be returned to them more easily.

It is also targeting car criminals with more patrols, “capture cars” and number plate recognition camera equipment.

Community Safety Inspector Terry Davies said:

We are concerned that the credit crunch may be leading more people to risk buying dodgy goods which could have been stolen, to save money.

Our guess is that with the type of stuff being stolen, there may be more people inclined to buy cheaper goods and perhaps ask less questions than before.

We know that lot of sat nav sytems are being stolen. They are becoming almost a necessary item to own.

What we feel is that because so many items of this type of property is being stolen, there must be more than usual market for them.

He added stolen goods were much easier to return to their owners if they had been registered on www.immobilise.com, a property register used by all the UK’s police forces.

To read the source article in full please go to the BBC News website

Crime, Immobilise, Mobile Phones, Police

Police urge residents to register valuables

Rochdale Online has reported that Police in the area will be travelling around to encourage Rochdale residents to register their valuables on Immobilise.

Officers will be at Morrisons Supermarket, Heywood, Asda on Dane Street, Rochdale and Tesco at Middleton Gardens, Middleton between 10am and 6pm on Tuesday 13 January to demonstrate the use of the UK’s National Property Register “Immobilise”.

Nicola Bamford, reporter for Rochdale Online, said;

…by using “Immobilise” owners can put up details to be used for comparison should stolen items be recovered from criminals. The database is both simple and free and allows users to add item photographs and certificates of ownership to their accounts as well as immediately alerting law enforcement to the theft of an item.

Currently, “Immobilise” has a running record of 250 cases per week of items being successfully reunited with their owners. Furthermore, the system also aids with insurance claims as some companies may be reluctant to pay compensation to the 18% of cases where theft is due to trivial security negligence, such as leaving a window open.

To read the source article in full please go to: Rochdale Online

CheckMEND, Crime, eBay, Immobilise, Mobile Phones, Police

Gwent Police launch high-tech war on thieves

The South Wales Argus has reported that vehicle thieves and shoplifters in Gwent are being targeted by police.

Extra officers are being used this week to capture cars and use specialist number plate recognition equipment to find stolen goods and return them to their rightful owners.

Detective Inspector Peter Jones, who is leading the operation, said

This is a response to the increase in thefts from vehicles during the run-up to Christmas … We know that thieves are stealing number plates, sat navs, audio equipment like CD players and mobile phones. We also know they are selling them on and are working with second hand shops to stop that.

People can register their valuables on the specially designed Immobilise.com website so their goods can be returned if stolen.

Officers from the community safety team will also be out in January showing shoppers how to register their valuables.

Inspector Terry Davies from the team said:

We are concerned that the credit crunch may be leading more people to risk buying dodgy goods which could have been stolen, to save money.

To view the source article in full please go to: South Wales Argus Newsdesk