House burglaries drop by 15 per cent in Telford

Police said there had also been a drop of more than 20 per cent in non-residential burglaries in the borough.

In the past six months there have been 232 residential burglaries - there were 278 for the same six month period last year. That is a reduction of about 16.5 per cent.

There were 267 non-residential burglaries – in business and community buildings – over the first six months of this year compared to 340 last year, a 21.5 per cent reduction.

Residential burglaries also include thefts from connected property, including garages and sheds.

It was revealed this week that preventative measures helped cut burglaries in Newport by 50 per cent.

Only four house burglaries were reported in the town between January and June this year, half of those reported during the same period in 2018.

In February, a man was sentenced to three years imprisonment for one of those house burglaries.

Part of this has been linked to Newport becoming a We Don't Buy Crime town, with residents being offered free property marking kits.

So far, almost 1,500 Newport residents have registered. The property marking kits include a window sticker for residents to display in their window warning thieves crime prevention measures have been taken.

A similar scheme was launched recently in Brookside.

Superintendent Paul Moxley, local policing commander for Telford & Wrekin, said: "We know burglary has a significant impact on our local communities.

Relentless

"So far, this year we have seen significant reductions in burglary right across the borough, with a 50 per cent reduction in the number of house burglaries in Newport alone in the last six months.

"This of course does not mean we are complacent and our work to tackle burglaries is relentless.

"Last year, we were really pleased when Newport Town Council came onboard with We Don’t Buy Crime and became a We Don’t Buy Crime town which meant, every single resident is entitled to a property marking kit so they can protect their property. The initiative sends out a clear message to criminals that crime prevention measures have been taken with signs displayed throughout the town warning thieves the town is protected.

“We have a dedicated team of detectives who investigate house burglaries who do all they can to bring offenders to justice, and earlier this year the team successfully secured the conviction of a man for a house burglary in Newport in February this year. He is now serving a three year sentence. An arrest has also been made in connection with another burglary with that investigation on-going."

Superintendent Moxley said stopping it in the first place is key to tackling crime.

"Preventing crime in the first place is absolutely key and we have a number of initiatives in place to essentially put criminals out of business," he said.

"We work closely with second hand stores, helping them to identify if property they are offered for sale is stolen and letting them know what they should do if they do suspect it is stolen.

"In addition, our frontline officers are provided with UV torches so they can check recovered property for property marking technology. If the property has been marked it helps us to identify if it doesn’t belong to the person whose possession it is in, and if it doesn’t they can potentially be arrested for handling stolen goods.

“Working with our local communities to tackle crime is paramount and we continue to urge people to come forward and report any concerns they have to us, whether it is suspicious activity or something out of the ordinary, if they report it we can take action. The information we receive from local residents helps us build a picture of what is happening in our local communities and allows us to take action to prevent further crime.”

Call police on 101 or contact Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555111 or at crimestoppers-uk.org

In an emergency or if a crime is currently taking place call 999.