Police are using a new decoy tactic to stop the Grinch stealing Christmas this year for people across Merseyside.
As part of Operation Trojan, police in Knowsley are trialling the use of a decoy delivery van to deter and detect criminals who would target these vehicles and the contents within. The decoy will have a strong but covert presence in crime hotspots across the region where acquisitive crime is most often reported.
Due to the introduction of online shopping, many people rely on deliveries, and in the run up to Christmas there is an increase in parcel theft as well as the damaging effect it has on the community, with many unable to claim back their stolen goods. Knowsley Police said it will not tolerate this and are "not going to allow the Grinch to steal Christmas".
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Knowsley Chief Inspector, Christopher Ruane told the ECHO: “We’ve seen an increase in offences which target delivery drivers and parcels, while there’s also been an increase in the different ways people are shopping in the run up to Christmas.
“This is a key time of year now. There’s increased pressure to have our bags ready to go under the tree and delivery companies are under a lot of pressure as well, while potentially some stolen parcels might not be redelivered.
“The police are here to prevent crime, not just detect it, so we're perfectly happy with it being public knowledge that the police are doing this. We want the perpetrators to be aware that when they are approaching these vehicles – and an opportunity has arisen for them to steal, that it could be a police vehicle, there could be officers around the corner, and that Knowsley police are well aware of what’s going on and plan to tackle these offences.
“Ultimately, this is about prevention for us. We can take away easy opportunities both through the public's behaviour: parcels not being left outside, and making use of safe spaces, and also by bringing justice to the perpetrators while removing the opportunity to commit crime by putting the element of doubt in there."
Three drivers are typically required for a deployment on the operation. One will be in plain clothes in possession of full PPE, driving a plain Transit type hire van and wearing a high visibility vest, posing as a delivery driver. Two will be in uniform in close proximity to the van to respond to assistance calls if needed. The delivery driver can also act as a spotter.
Vehicles will be driven around and parked in hotspot vehicle crime local locations with numerous apparent packages, boxes and valuable goods in plain sight for anyone passing. Locations for the operation will be reviewed weekly to target areas where vehicle crime is most prevalent.
There are other local policing areas in Merseyside which are also using this tactic in order tackle the problem of acquisitive crime, and Mr Ruane said: "It’s not a Knowsley problem alone."
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