HUNDREDS of charges and 55 convictions have been secured by a new police team based in Southend city centre in a crackdown on thefts, assaults and public order offences.
Essex Police’s Southend team launched “Operation Raker” last September to target persistent offenders wreaking havoc for businesses in and around the High Street.
In less than a year, the team have secured almost 500 charges and their work, alongside the council’s community safety officers and Bid Rangers, has led to 55 successful convictions.
And courts have imposed a combined total of almost 12 years of custodial sentences and 13 suspended, community or rehabilitative sentences in 46 of those cases.
Sergeant Steve Wells, who co-ordinates Op Raker, said: “Thanks to our close working with city retailers, the city council and the BID team, offenders have been left with no choice but to plead guilty and face the consequences of their crimes.
“The provision of witness statements and CCTV footage has been instrumental to our evidence-gathering and it is this which has enabled our officers to present such strong cases at court.”
To date, 32 repeat and prolific offenders have been brought before the courts to answer for their crimes, which are mostly shop thefts and breaches of court-imposed criminal behaviour orders.
Seven new criminal behaviour orders have also been imposed on prolific offenders, with a variety of conditions, including bans from stores and drug and alcohol treatment courses. Currently, nine offenders are remanded in prison or are on bail pending sentencing.
Op Raker was born after research showed a significant proportion of crimes in retail premises - such as thefts and assaults - were being committed by repeat offenders.
Sergeant Wells added: “We all share knowledge and information which has led to our officers being able to arrest suspects more quickly and this, in turn, has meant individuals committing fewer offences than they were previously.
“Fewer offences mean fewer victims of crime and fewer retailers exposed to losses. Shop theft is not a victimless crime because, somewhere along the line, someone has to pay for those losses. All of this work is making our city centre a safer place to work and shop for everyone.”
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