January 2nd 2012 A New Year message from East Cambs Neighbourhood Watch Secretary Kevin Evans.
This is the time of year when it is often thought appropriate to “cast off the old and put on the new”. This certainly applies to the local constabulary. Last year and for many previous years Cambridgeshire Constabulary have had their HQ at Hinchingbrooke and three divisional HQs – ours being at Parkside in Cambridge. Under the three divisions there have been numerous sectors including Ely. The new system being implemented this year is to retain the HQ at Hinchingbrooke, abolish the 3 divisions and have 6 large sectors or Local Areas – East Cambs being one. East Cambs with its police station in Ely will take on the responsibilities that were previously at Parkside and also some responsibilities which are being devolved from Hinchingbrooke – it will become like a mini constabulary with a Chief Inspector, a uniformed inspector and a CID inspector. The number of police officers will be increased.
As part of these changes Inspector Robin Sissons will be moving and will be replaced by Inspector Paul Ormerod. I have been meeting Paul Ormerod regularly over the last 4 years and can say that he is a firm supporter of Neighbourhood Watch; though there is a little sting in the tail – in my regular meetings with him at Hinchingbrooke I have been telling him what an active and effective bunch of coordinators we have in East Cambs – so his expectations may be high!
Robin Sissons has regularly been contributing to The Ely Standard in a column called Robin’s Nest. I attach a copy of his final posting. There is also an item by the chief constable providing information on the driving force behind the changes – you have guessed it, financial cuts!
Wishing you all a safe and secure year,
Kevin
Keynote Address by the Chief Constable Simon Parr
Delivered at the October 2011 meeting of the Cambridgeshire Neighbourhood Watch AssociationmThe new structure of the Cambs Police Force will include a Force Inspector who will have County-wide responsibility for engagement with the public.
There will be a special County squad set up called Public Protection. This will comprise Officers specially trained to deal with public protection covering areas such as domestic incidents, sexual abuse, child abuse and crimes involving suffering for vulnerable persons.
It is proposed to use Special Constables in areas close to where they live to support staff deployed and/ or to deal with local issues such as parking near to schools.
Civilian volunteers are being recruited with specialist skills such as I.T. This will be an expanding area of public service.
“High demand” families can each cost society up to £360,000 per year for professional engagement. The Chief Constable wishes to concentrate on finding ways of dealing with and preventing this call on society’s resources. This will be a major element to his thinking and working in the coming year.
He does not wish to criminalise youngsters who have taken just one small step out of order. Restorative Justice will be used to emphasise that this behaviour is not acceptable; regard will be taken to discover and deal with the cause; if this behaviour continues he will use the full force of the law.
The force has lost some 50 mid rank and senior officer posts, as he has deemed it top heavy compared to other similar forces. All officers will now be expected to make their own judgements and to stand by them, rather than frequently having to refer upwards every action to a higher level for approval.In future police, will deal with more crimes over the telephone. Call-centre operatives will be trained to gain more relevant information from persons seeking police assistance than at present
Officers will carry out more enquiries over the phone for incidents that do not require a police presence on site. This will save a large amount of time and vehicle fuel costs. Any incident that requires an Officer to attend will still be dealt with by an Officer on scene.
July 15th 2010. An endorsement of Neighbourhood Watch by the local police team
Neighbourhood Watch exists to work with the local police force to reduce crime and anti-social behaviour, and also to encourage neighbourliness and improve the quality of life for local residents and tenants. Neighbourhood Watch is listed by the Home Office as the largest voluntary organisation in the country and as one of the biggest and most successful crime prevention schemes ever.
However Neighbourhood Watch is more than that; many residents and in particular the elderly are reluctant to phone and speak to some unseen official, but are happy to speak to a familiar face within the neighbourhood to explain that there is a problem. Neighbourhood Watch provides this familiar face. If you are able to be such a person and want to know what’s involved please phone Kevin Evans on 01353 614892.
To join Neighbourhood Watch is free, but if you wish to have Neighbourhood Street signs on lamp posts in your street, these are usually £12 each. Such signs are not compulsory but are highly recommended as a deterrent against crime. Within East Cambridgeshire there is for a limited period the offer of new signs to new newly formed neighbourhood watch schemes - even more reason to make that phone call.
Kind regards,
PCSO Paul Murphy
many Cannabis Factories in Ely. We recently have not had much intelligence
on any possible factories, so here is just a bit of information as to how
to look out for one.
The current trend is for a 3 to 4 bedroom detached house to be rented out.
They are normally rented from a property company and they have references.
They always pay the rent on time either in cash or with a money transfer as
these cannot be traced back. They will then enter the address with a gang
and in a couple of days turn a nice house into a cannabis factory. They
cover the walls and floor with plastic and close all the curtains and
windows. They will drills into the walls and ceilings for all the lights,
heaters, fans, and ventilation equipment they need. They will then bypass
the electricity meter and wire directly into the mains which is another
means of avoiding detection and then fill the house with plant pots and
start growing cannabis. They will normally leave one person at the address
who if caught knows very little about the organisation and is expendable.
So what to look for.
Any house which always has it curtains and windows closed with plastic or
tin foil in the windows. Cars arriving with a few people and then loading
plastic bags. People tampering with or looking at their electricity supply.
Lights always coming on and going off at the same time. The smell of
cannabis in the street somewhere near to the address. Condensation in the
windows from the heaters. Lots of bags of compost or fertiliser being taken
into the address. Bin bags in the gardens that are not put out to be taken
by bin men.
It is worth noting that it is usually serious organised gangs that are
growing the cannabis, but they pose no real threat to any residents as they
like to keep a low profile as you can imagine.
So having read this, please pass this to your friends and relatives as in
my experience it is local people that identify these addresses not us.
All crimes and incidents involving wildlife will be monitored by them. They
will be working throughout Cambridgeshire with other agencies such as the
RSPCA, RSPB and National Wildlife crime unit
Both officers can be contacted through the force switchboard on 0845 456
456 4 or on email 'RCAT@cambs.pnn.police.uk'
Bogus callers are part of a highly organised, professional criminal fraternity. They pose as utility workers, tradespeople, police officers and sometimes even charity workers. They come in all shapes and sizes: men, women, working singly or in pairs - sometimes even children have been used in the deception. What they all share are an ability to convince an older person on the doorstep that they have a genuine reason to enter the home. Once inside the home they will use a ruse to distract the older person’s attention, whilst they or an unseen accomplice search the home for money and valuables to steal. This type of crime is not petty and can result in perpetrators netting hundreds of thousands of pounds from their victims. The below examples represent a wide selection of scams used both in the UK, Europe & America & are divided into distraction burglary & rogue trader scams. It should be noted that rogue traders would take any opportunity to commit a distraction theft should the opportunity arise.
Water Scams -
"I'm from the Water Board & am here to check the pipes".
"I need to check the water/turn the water off (I'm laying pipes up the road)".
"The water is unfit for drinking. I need to come in & check it”.
This is the top scam used in the country despite the fact that the ‘Water board’ ceased to exist in 1989 and water companies rarely make house calls.
Once inside, the bogus caller asks the victim to go upstairs/into the kitchen & turn on the taps - thus distracted - the bogus caller/ accomplice then is free to search the home for money/valuables.
The front door is invariably left open for accomplice to slip in unnoticed.Utilities-
"There has been a gas leak in the area. I need to come in & check your supply".
"I have come to read your meter"Council/social services/charities-
"I am from the council and need to check for damp/check your financial details/am offering a free safety inspection”
“I am from Age Concern/Help the Aged & want to come in & tell you about all the services you could be eligible for.”
Various ruses are used with this deception, centred around the caller having come to check the householder’s status either as regards benefits or other entitlements.Police-
The fake/stolen money ruse
This is a very successful ruse, which involves a bogus caller impersonating a police officer & asking the victim to give them their cash to go away and check the serial numbers. In some instances this request is followed by a threat that the victim will be arrested if they do not comply.Multiple Scams
“I am from the police/bogus caller prevention department of the council & would like to follow up some information on your recent victimisation.”
Bogus callers share information on targets that keep large amounts of cash in the house and are seen as ‘easy targets.’ Addresses are either swapped through networks or offenders leave a marker on the property such as a chalk mark on the fence or wall that indicates an easy victim. Offenders sometimes dress up as police officers.Use of children/luring the victim outside-
"I've lost my football/kite/puppy/rabbit in your garden"·
“I am being bullied & they have tied my shoelaces together. Can you come & untie them.”
The older person is distracted by the child (child is usually crying) & goes to the garden leaving an external door unlocked. An adult then slips in unseen…
“I am a tree inspector and have been contracted to remove and trim some trees along your property line”
The victim is asked to step outside and show the bogus caller where the property line is so they don’t cut down the wrong trees. The bogus caller then says that they need to get something from their van and do not return.
By the time the victim realises they are not coming back the theft will have been committed and the offenders fled.The intention of this information is to make you all aware of the type of scams which these people will use in order to gain entry to someone’s property. Please be aware that the above are just a selection of the most common scams in use. If in any doubt about anyone cold calling PLEASE do not let them in, and call 999 immediately.