City Police Weekly Brief

It is always a pleasure to read thank you letters from members of the public or colleagues from partner agencies who feel officers have provided them with an excellent service. In the past week three such letters have been brought to my attention and I would like to share some of the comments made.

One of the letters, in praise of Pc Dryden who is part of the Safer Neighbourhood Team based at Hinckley Road Police Station, reads “I have found myself communicating with several police forces around the country, and I can truly say the recent involvement with Pc Dryden was the most positive and left me feeling that Leicestershire Police are committed to tackling crime against vulnerable people.” Another letter reads “the officers were excellent in that they responded very quickly to a situation, that left unchecked could have escalated into something ugly.” Victims of an attempted burglary also took the time to write the following: “We felt that each person was genuinely interested in our case, even though the burglar had failed in his attempts to force open our doors. We were aware this was a minor matter, but no one made us feel that it was trivial or that we were wasting police time; in fact, everyone made us feel it was important to deal with the incident and with our feelings and response to it.”

Over the past week I have also spent time looking through award nominations for officers in the city who have demonstrated bravery or done some outstanding work. We have our own awards evening planned in the city next month to recognise good work. However, I have also put forward a number of exceptional cases for consideration for a Chief Constable’s Award later this year.

Please don’t forget that you can also nominate your neighbourhood officer for an award. The Leicester Mercury has recently launched its search for Beat Bobby of the Year 2013. If you think your beat bobby has made a difference in your community then please consider nominating them. The closing date for nominations is Thursday March 28.

Safer Neighbourhood Team officers based in the city centre are working with city wardens this week to reduce thefts from vehicles parked in multi-storey car parks or on the streets. Unfortunately the city centre has seen a rise in vehicle crime lately and much of it is preventable. Statistics reveal that there were 133 thefts from vehicles reported in the city centre between September to November 2012, and 51 of those vehicles had been left insecure. PCSOs and city wardens will be speaking with motorists as they arrive at four city car parks each day this week, reminding them to lock their cars, close all windows and remove any items from show, especially sat navs. If you park on the street, have a look at the back of your pay and display ticket for more crime prevention advice.

You may recall a couple of weeks ago I mentioned an increase in thefts of mobile phones from pubs and clubs on Friday and Saturday nights in the city centre. I’m pleased to say that thanks to joint work between the police, CCTV operators and door staff, four men and a woman were arrested in the city centre in the early hours of Sunday morning (February 17) in connection with phone thefts.

Other notable charges and arrests from the past week include:

• A 28-year-old man who has been charged following two burglaries in Leicester on Wednesday February 13. The burglaries happened in Silver Street in the early hours of the morning and various items were taken.
• Two men who have been charged with a robbery against a 20-year-old man in Belgrave Gate in the early hours of Saturday, January 5.
• Two men aged 23 and 25 who were stopped by officers in the early hours of the morning on Thursday February 7, 2013 in Butterwick Drive in the Beaumont Leys area of Leicester. A 25-year-old man was arrested for driving whilst disqualified and possession with intent to supply class A drugs. A subsequent search of an address was made, where property was a recovered as well as a quantity of what is believed to be class A drugs. A 23-year-old man was arrested at the address. Both men have since been released on police bail, whilst investigations continue.

Over the past week, officers in the city also responded to 2,284 calls for assistance from members of the public.

As always, thank you for taking the time to read my weekly round up of policing activity in Leicester. For daily updates please follow me on Twitter @robnixoncity

Chief Superintendent Rob Nixon, Leicester City BCU Commander

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