New rural crime campaign launched in East Hampshire

Officers from East Hampshire’s Neighbourhood Policing Team have launched a new campaign to target criminals carrying out rural crime in the district.

Op Rebate East will see targeted days of action involving officers from various teams across the force.

Officers will also look to set up a new Rural Crime Tactical Board, to bring rural communities together and share information on current trends, policing operations and the latest crime prevention advice.

Acting Sergeant Dan Ross, from Alton police station, said: “We are very aware of how devastating rural crime can be to people’s lives and livelihoods, and it is a district priority.

“Our focus will be on burglaries at residential properties in rural areas, such as the targeting of barns and outbuildings, and business burglaries, such as at farms.

“We have seen rural burglaries recently in the district, with a common MO being groups of two to four people committing offences overnight and using high-powered 4x4s with cloned number plates, or no number plates at all.

“Op Rebate East will draw on the work carried out by our colleagues in the north east of the county, where days of action involved officers from Country Watch, Neighbourhood Policing Teams, Response and Patrol and bordering police forces.

“We aim to regularly update our communities on any activity we carry out, and we will look to hold dedicated rural crime beat surgeries on our East Hants Police Facebook page.”

Advice

Officers would like to share some crime prevention advice that can help people protect their property.

These include:

•           Lock farm equipment and vehicles in a secure building when not in use
•           Invest in a secure storage toolbox
•           Install a burglar alarm on buildings where your equipment is kept
•           Always lock vehicles when left outside and keep the keys in your possession
•           Keep expensive items and vehicles out of sight when not in use
•           Consider using hitch locks, wheels clamps or ground anchors
•           Keep a record of all valuable items
•           Consider fitting outside security lights

More crime prevention advice can be found here: https://www.hampshire.police.uk/advice/advice-and-information/rc/rural-crime/rural-crime-prevention/