Connect - Winter 2012

Promoting the achievements of Crimestoppers and its supporters ISSUE 10 // WINTER 2012 The only charity helping to solve crimes

CATCHING CRIMINALS ON THE COSTA DEL SOL

www.crimestoppers-uk.org

n o i t a r e p O ptura Ca PAGE 7 Calm during riot chaos

PAGES 10/11 Operation Captura success

PAGES 12/13 Fearless shoots crime

PAGE 15 Going for gold

ISSUE 10 // WELCOME

WELCOME WELCOME FROM MICHAEL LAURIE CBE pAGE 2 Welcome to the Winter 2012 edition of Connect.

Whilst we’ve experienced little change in the financial environment during 2011, we’ve seen a significant number of positive highlights and the charity has celebrated a key milestone, as we marked the fifth anniversary of Operation Captura with the release of a seventh batch of appeals. You can read more about the launch on pages 10/11.

One of the most notable news stories of the year was without doubt the August riots. For the majority of us, the scenes from the riots were unlike anything we’d witnessed before and certainly the response from the public was unprecedented, as the number of online forms we received increased by over 300 per cent and the number of visits to our website grew to five times the usual figure.

During the year our efforts to target fraud have escalated, through our campaign launched in partnership with the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) to tackle benefit fraud, in addition to our initiative to combat identify fraud – the type of fraud which is of most concern to the public, according to a major survey conducted on our behalf.

The charity also joined forces with the Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO) to host a national seminar to target crime affecting rural communities, an event attended by over 300 people and described by police minister Nick Herbert as “immensely important.”

Looking ahead, we are considering new ways of driving performance upwards and attacking the most serious crimes. Underpinning our work will be a focus on the use of digital media platforms to publicise the charity further and to provide every possible means for the public to pass on information.

It’s anticipated - based on the degree of success seen in previous years – that this will not only help maintain the trend of improved performance figures year on year, but ultimately lead to some exceptional results.

Michael Laurie CBE Chief Executive 2 WINTER 2012

NATIONAL NEWS Calm during riot chaos pAGE 7

PARTNERSHIPS & EVENTS Support reaches new heights pAGE 8

FEATURES Operation Captura success pAGEs 10 & 11 Fearless pAGEs 12 & 13

REGIONAL NEWS Focus on theft of Asian gold pAGE 15 Hotline inspires kayak challenge pAGE 18 Scotland goes green pAGE 19

GET CONNECTED! The next issue of connect will be published in July 2012.

The deadline for articles will be 4th June 2012.

Editor: Giselle Lares EditorIAL Assistant: Mary Dolan Published by: Crimestoppers Trust Crimestoppers is a registered charity and a company limited by guarantee.

DESIGNED BY: Bell

Please send articles to giselle.lares@crimestoppers-uk.org

ISSUE 10 // NATIONAL NEWS

search for Most

Wanted Fraudsters The charity launched a hunt for ten of the UK’s most wanted fraudsters in August 2011 as part of our continued efforts to tackle fraud, a crime that cost the UK economy £38.4 billion in 2010, according to the National Fraud Authority.* The campaign saw early success as Nicholas Slocombe, 28, gave himself up at Shrewsbury police station less than a week after the launch.

Slocombe later pleaded guilty to 28 fraud charges and was sentenced to two years in prison.

The arrests of Jascent Nakawunde, 33, and Kevin Leitch, 48, shortly followed, bringing the number of arrests to three in just over a week.

Like Slocombe, Nakawunde felt the pressure of the media attention from the campaign and handed herself in at Croydon Police Station. The former live-in carer was wanted in connection with an alleged £35,000 fraud involving the theft of cheques from a woman aged in her 80s.

The arrest of Misba Uddin, 48, came in late August and he was subsequently

charged for allegedly submitting fraudulent mortgage applications worth £5.7 million.

50 per cent success rate Solicitor Ajayi Seun, who was sought after reportedly duping mortgage lenders and banks out of approximately £12 million, was located at the end of September, bringing the arrest rate to an impressive 50 per cent in two months.

Michael Laurie, Crimestoppers’ Chief Executive said: “I’m proud that Crimestoppers is playing an active role helping to bring to justice some of the UK’s worst fraud offenders and we’re delighted that the campaign has celebrated a 50 per cent success rate within just two months of the launch.”

View the remaining appeals at http://wanted.crimestoppers-uk.org.

ACHIEVEMENTS SINCE 1988 Pieces of useful information received in 2010-2011

90,000

111,568

arrests and charges made since 1988

£220+ drugs seized (millions)

People volunteering to help fight crime

450+

1,293,956 pieces of useful information received to date

Increase of the charity’s following on Facebook and Twitter since 2010

255%

145,000 unique visitors every month to www.crimestoppers-uk.org

+£116

goods recovered (millions)

Criminals arrested from the ‘Most Wanted’ section of the website

Number of days taken to locate and arrest ‘Most Wanted’ after Operation Captura launch

1,420 1

*Estimated £38 billion cost of fraud in 2010 reported by National Fraud Authority in January 2011.

The charity also campaigns fear of launched to target benefit fraud – which costs the UK £1.2 billion per year – and ID fraud, after research found that fraud and ID theft ranked first as the crime

Fighting

fraud

www.crimestoppers-uk.org / / 0800 555 111

the public feel most at risk from.

On launch day of our benefit fraud campaign there was a five fold increase – 427 per cent – in useful information received on the same day the previous week and the Crimestoppers website also received 50 per cent more visits.

WINTER 2012 3

ISSUE 10 // NATIONAL NEWS

Anonymou project lau s pin nches in prisons na tionwide Crimestoppers teamed up with the Ministry of Justice’s National Offender Management Service (NOMS) in September to launch a project that allows those in prison to anonymously pass on information about crime.

The new system has been set up to allow offenders to contact Crimestoppers anonymously by dialling a special pin number from inside their prison, which will prevent any call made to us being monitored by the authorities.

It is hoped that this joint operation will help tackle the trafficking of drugs from the outside, and mobile phones from being used as currency or instruments to contact and intimidate witnesses.

This launch comes on the back of a successful pilot scheme run in Yorkshire in 2007, which generated an incredibly positive response, whilst an identical scheme has been running in Scotland since 2008.

Founder of Crimestoppers, Lord Ashcroft, KCMG, spoke of the importance of making anonymity available to all those who have information about crime, and not just to members of the public.

He said: “From day one, Crimestoppers’ success has been due to the anonymity that has been guaranteed to those supplying information about crime. Because of the knowledge that the prison population is likely to have about crime, the launch of this pin service offers the same guarantee of anonymity to prisoners as it does to the rest of the population.

This is a huge step forward for Crimestoppers in accessing information from a potentially vital group of individuals. I am delighted that NOMS has given us this valuable opportunity to introduce this project into their prisons.”

4 WINTER 2012

James Birkett Press Officer at British Embassy Madrid

Guest Comment “ No need for sun cream where you’re going, son…“ “Your face rings a bell...” These are the words our ‘most wanted’ residents hope they’ll never hear when they go for a “quiet” pint in their local pub on the Costas. In the last five years, many British and Spanish citizens have recognised some of the faces of wanted criminals and have contributed to their arrest thanks to Crimestoppers’ Operation Captura campaign.

The public, the authorities and the media in Spain are key to the success of Operation Captura. However, Crimestoppers, SOCA and the British Embassy had to deal with some initial cultural obstacles in a country where the few public appeals come directly from the police. Concerns over the possible negative impact on the image of Spain’s Costas has disappeared and today, Spanish authorities acknowledge the importance of these campaigns and work closely with SOCA and the British Embassy in Madrid.

Media support in Spain has been crucial. The last campaign launch in Madrid was covered by six Spanish national TV channels and more than 80 English language media outlets based on the Costas. The lack of similar campaigns in Spain and the large number of British residents may explain such levels of interest which have featured in previous campaigns.

From a British Embassy point of view, there are few things more gratifying than bringing the media, public and both Spanish and British authorities together to work on a common and successful project, so Embassy and SOCA staff in Spain feel quietly proud in doing their bit to make our streets safer.

s r e p p o t s e Crim s u o i c e r p s t ge t f e h t l a t e about m Following information received from the charity’s corporate partners Network Rail and Openreach, in addition to concerns voiced by the British Transport Police (BTP) – the lead law enforcement agency for metal theft in the UK – it became apparent that metal theft was of concern to a number of our stakeholders and through research we found that this crime type was on the increase nationwide.

Taking a proactive approach towards targeting a crime type that affects the public, our corporate partners and law enforcement, Crimestoppers’ Chief Executive Michael Laurie met with Openreach counterpart Liv Garfield in July to discuss the steps needed to tackle the problem.

The charity also offered an enhanced reward of £3,000 for information leading to the arrest and conviction of those responsible for the theft of brass from a war memorial in Carshalton, Surrey shortly before Remembrance Day. Dave Cording, Crimestoppers’ Deputy Chief Executive, said: “This was an

appalling act and given the time of year, shows an utter lack of respect.

“We felt it was necessary to become involved as this incident caused a great deal of anguish for the local community and those for whom this memorial and others like it hold historical importance.

Sadly, this incident is reflective of a wider problem as we know metal theft is a crime which is happening all over the country but we are eager to take action against it.”

The charity is currently developing a national campaign to target metal theft and based on information from the industries Crimestoppers has been approached by, the proposed strands

of the campaign are; heritage, communications, transport and energy. From May-November 2011 Crimestoppers received 158 pieces of useful information about metal theft and it is anticipated that this figure will increase significantly with the launch of the national campaign.

Michael Laurie said: “We’re aware that metal theft affects the public in several ways, whether it is through disruption to your daily commute, disconnection from

‘In 2012 Crimestoppers will once again be taking action to combat a crime which has a serious impact on the lives of the British public.” your energy supply or internet or a local memorial which has been desecrated – through a national campaign to launch in 2012 Crimestoppers will once again be taking action to combat crime which has a serious impact on the lives of the British public.”

Crimestoppers’ annual review goes digital You can now read and download our latest annual review in a new dynamic format. Supporting our move towards anonymous online technology, publishing our www.crimestoppers-uk.org / / 0800 555 111

annual review online marks the launch of our first fully digital publication. http://annualreview.crimestoppers-uk.org WINTER 2012 5

ISSUE 10 // NATIONAL NEWS

Crimestoppers closes the gate on criminality

Chief Constable of Dave Cording and on e, Richard Crompt Lincolnshire Polic

An estimated £50 million to £70 million worth of plant and agricultural machinery is stolen nationally every year, including agricultural equipment such as tractors costing up to £150,000, sometimes by organised criminals who can get the equipment out of the country within 24 hours.

Crimestoppers organised a successful national seminar in Kettering in November 2011, entitled “Closing the gate on criminality”, co-hosted by the Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO). This niche area of crime is often overlooked, prompting Crimestoppers to take the initiative to launch a rural focused event in November. Rural crime is a strong area of concern that thus drew rural communities and national organisations to gather together in aid of stopping such rural theft.

Theft of farm machinery and equipment, oil, diesel, batteries, metal for scrap value, tools, quad bikes, agricultural chemicals, tractors, and livestock such as sheep are all target areas of importance to 300 attendees.

Left-Right: Chris, Sarah, Terry and

Congratulations to this year’s Volunteer of the Year Award winner, Dev Chakraborty of West Country Crimestoppers.

Dev has played a pivotal role in the committee’s fundraising, with his involvement in creating the Business Associate Scheme in the West Country and helping to organise a number of successful fundraising events, ranging from Golf Days for the business community to Christmas fundraising dinners.

6 WINTER 2012

Crimestoppers four recognised in New Year Honours

Crimestoppers’ Deputy Chief Executive, Dave Cording, a key note speaker said: “We understand rural communities are

Recognising our volunteers With a background in commercial radio and business, Dev has provided consistent and proactive support to the charity for over nine years, using his vast experience to obtain a large amount of radio coverage for Crimestoppers.

close-knit and trust is an important part of rural life, so people may know who is committing these crimes, but don’t feel comfortable giving this information directly to the police.

This is where we can help, by providing an anonymous service for people to pass on information about crimes.”

Runners up:

Winner Dev

Val Smith, Northern Ireland Crimestoppers Val has offered considerable support to the committee having been instrumental in organising the Brain Game fundraiser and helping to develop the Northern Ireland Associate Members Scheme.

Peter Jones, Merseyside Crimestoppers As a longstanding member of the committee, Peter has been commended for his proactive approach and has played a key part in coordinating the successful Merseyside Awards Evening.

Ian

Congratulations to Chris Preddie, former Crimestoppers Community Champion; Terry Flynn, volunteer and former Chair of Wales/Cymru Crimestoppers; Ian Reid, Scotland Crimestoppers volunteer; and Sarah Smithurst, Nottinghamshire Crimestoppers Co-ordinator, who have all been named in 2012’s New Year Honours list.

Chris Preddie and Ian Reid received OBEs for services to Young People in London and Scotland respectively.

Terry Flynn was awarded an MBE for Services to the Community in Cardiff and Crime Prevention in Wales and Sarah Smithurst received an MBE for services to the Police, Crimestoppers and the British High Commission in Ghana.

ISSUE 10 // NATIONAL NEWS

Crimestoppers calm during riot chaos

Over the week, call volumes across the UK were 100 per cent higher than usual levels, and regions saw partners turn to Crimestoppers for help in obtaining information about those who had anything to do with the crimes.

With this record-breaking public response during the riot outbreak, Crimestoppers made extensive use of the contact bureau, social media platforms and media outlets to successfully manage the surge of interest around the riots.

Crimestoppers’ bureau went to great lengths to manage the incredible call increase, including calling back staff from leave, as well as bringing in trained temporary staff. Procedures at the bureau were altered in order to help manage the incoming volume of calls and information, such as planned outbreaks being prioritised on the basis of requiring rapid police response.

Proactive use of Crimestoppers’ Twitter and Facebook pages to communicate messages to the wider public saw Crimestoppers’ Twitter followers grow by 15 per cent. Many individuals sent information via social media platforms before even being prompted by Crimestoppers to use the dedicated number or online form. The use of social networking as an information avenue snowballed as the days went on, with more and more details and photos flowing through Crimestoppers’ social media pages.

FOR ATTENTION OF @ CrimestoppersUK!!! RT @jilsaddcc: RT@ssdfvfdddsdscc: F*****g idiots.

Riot in Leicester being planned via a facebook group. Report immediately, if you can.

Had a good night in croyden last nite, got me a couple of tvs and a blue ray dvd player

cdcdcscslmmllllcs @ CrimestoppersUK! Here is one of the scummy looters RT and get the guy caught #londonriots http://lockerz.com/s/127844562

During the riots across the UK in 2011, the Crimestoppers bureau received an overwhelming 300 per cent increase in online form submissions and phone calls exceeding 1,000 a day with the public sharing riot information.

As well as proactively spreading the word about the anonymous option of providing information through Crimestoppers, the charity also teamed up with Dixons, to offer rewards of up to £5,000 for information concerning the widespread disorder to help bring criminals to justice. Crimestoppers also supported riot advice created by the government for the public through its website, offering safety tips, advice for those who had been made homeless and information regarding potential compensation for damage and loss.

Most Wanted was also updated with images of those sought in connection with the disorder in London.

With the Olympic Games taking place in summer 2012, many people are concerned over potential ‘copycat’ riots across the UK. Crimestoppers is continuing its appeal for information on the riots to make London a safer place. With the record response which Crimestoppers has received in 2011 during and after the riots, it is evident that members of the public united over a desire to seek justice and put their trust in Crimestoppers to adequately handle the information they had to share.

I would like to thank Crimestoppers for their ongoing contribution towards regaining order and gathering intelligence following the riots.

The organisation is an excellent example of community working.

Mayor of London, Boris Johnson www.crimestoppers-uk.org / / 0800 555 111

WINTER 2012 7

ISSUE 10 // PARTNERSHIPS & EVENTS

Crimestoppers support reaches new heights

With special thanks to Openreach, one of Crimestoppers’ corporate partners, this year we held our annual Rewarding Partnerships event from the dizzy heights of the BT Tower.

With views across the capital, the event was held to thank Crimestoppers’ supporters whilst also providing an opportunity to cultivate new support and introduce people to the work of the charity.

This eminent venue was filled to capacity as guest speakers Deputy Chief Constable Michael Barton, Durham Constabulary, and Tim Barclay, Openreach Managing Director for Sales, Marketing and Customer Engagement addressed the topical issue of metal theft and how to target this crime type.

The Integrity Line The Integrity Line is an anonymous hotline dedicated entirely to members of your workplace, available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, and handled by trained Integrity Line call agents with calls never being recorded or traced.

The service provides an external whistle-blowing service and is available to both the public and private sectors.

Clients include police forces, other law enforcement agencies in the UK and overseas, financial institutions and private business. Organisations are given the opportunity to select a bespoke phone number and greeting to personalise the service.

Having an outsourced whistle-blowing line is one essential component of a Director’s defence when it comes to the newly implemented Bribery Act (July 2011).

As Directors now have liability to ensure that appropriate anti-bribery and corruption measures are in place.

Client security is paramount and the Integrity Line service offers information routing by secure e-mail as well as by confirmation reports on timely information only being passed verbally to pre-identified points of contact.

A recent addition to the service is the ability to receive information online by two-way forms via www.theiline.co.uk website. Online reports now account for around 37 per cent of all useful information received. This facility allows clients to have the online team pose further questions to callers without breaching their anonymity.

UK Home Security Week Crimestoppers worked with corporate partner Friedland as part of UK Home Security Week which ran from 24-30 September. The week aimed to raise awareness of the simple measures you can take to make your home more secure.

Crimestoppers, Age Concern and Friedland supported the initiative with local security roadshows and free burglar alarm installations for the elderly in Luton.

For further information on UK Home Security Week or to test your ability to secure a property visit ukhomesecurityweek.co.uk.

8 WINTER 2012

ISSUE 10 // PARTNERSHIPS & EVENTS

Crimestoppers’ crackdown on betting shop robberies in Liverpool

and conviction after the robbery of a betting shop or an attack on betting shop staff.

A reward of up to £10,000 offered by the Association of British Bookmakers (ABB), another of the charity’s partners, was also highlighted as part of the campaign. The reward is available for anyone who passes on information to the charity that leads to an arrest

During the campaign, useful information received in Merseyside increased by almost 30 per cent year on year.

Getting brains into gear in London

London Crimestoppers raised over £20,000 for the charity from their annual Brain Game event, held on 22 November at the prestigious Grange St. Paul’s Hotel.

iams

The initiative aims to prevent betting shops being a target for criminals and to ensure betting shops remain safe for customers and staff alike, whilst

encouraging members of the public with information on crime to pass it onto Crimestoppers.

© Simon Will

The charity launched a joint campaign with corporate partner William Hill at the beginning of December with the aim of slashing the number of robberies in betting shops across North Liverpool.

representatives Crimestoppers’ Gary Murray with e Polic ide seys Mer and from William Hill

The event, attended by 270 guests, included a quiz, raffle and auction and was hosted by BBC News Home Editor, Mark Easton. Those victorious on the night were First City Care who finished in first place, followed by Smith & Williamson in second place and by ADT Fire & Security in third.

Brain Game winners, First City Care

www.crimestoppers-uk.org / / 0800 555 111

© Simon Williams

Prizes included an exclusive tour of the Olympic Stadium and lunch and dinner aboard the world-renowned Orient Express.

WINTER 2012 9

n o i t a r e p O ptura Ca

t n e c r e p 70 ess rate succ peration for Oura fifth t p a C versary a nn i Crimestoppers’ growing reputation abroad received another boost recently after the crime-fighting charity celebrated the fifth anniversary of its Operation Captura Campaign with the launch of the seventh batch of appeals.

10  WINTER 2012

Lord Ashcroft KCMG, James Brokensh ire MP and UK Ambassador for Spain Giles Paxm an

Having launched the campaign in October 2006 alongside the Serious Organised Crime Agency (SOCA) to locate UK fugitives believed to be hiding in Spain, the charity was joined by Founder and Chair of Trustees Lord Ashcroft, KCMG, and Home Office Minister for Security, James Brokenshire MP, in launching its latest appeals at the UK Embassy in Madrid.

ISSUE 10 // FEATURES

The launch, which took place on 20 October, saw five new and five existing wanted criminals revealed as part of the campaign in Spain, taking the total number of individuals being sought to 65 since the operation began five years ago.

The five new appeals included suspected criminals wanted for crimes including high value drug offences, child sex offences, conspiracy to commit armed robbery and conspiracy to possess firearms, while all five of the individuals that featured as part of the re-appeals are wanted for murder.

With the launch attended by both Spanish and UK national media, the latest appeal saw instant success with the arrest of wanted child sex offender, Dominic Steven Powell, just hours after the launch had taken place.

He said: “Operation Captura is a unique partnership that has seen huge success in bringing some of the UK’s most wanted fugitives to justice.”

“A small number of suspected criminals see Spain as a safe place to evade law enforcement but, thanks to the confidence the UK, Spanish and ex-pat communities have in Crimestoppers, these individuals will not be able to escape justice for much longer.”

James Brokenshire MP was equally optimistic: “Crimestoppers, SOCA and all the agencies involved in Operation Captura have made an incredibly valuable contribution to our efforts to pursue criminals and bring them to justice.

With over three quarters of Britain’s most wanted in Spain arrested over the last five years, fugitives still on the run should be in no doubt that they have nowhere to hide.

“We can stop criminals Powell was arrested in the Spanish in their tracks coastal area of Mijas, bringing the number of individuals arrested in Spain and bring to bear “When crime crosses borders as part of the campaign, to almost 30. the full force it is more important than ever to Criminals have also been located in work closely with our international Portugal, Holland and Ireland. of the law.” partners in order to keep the UK safe.

This arrest brought the number of fugitives located as part of the campaign to 47 out of 65, bringing the success rate to over 70 per cent.

Lord Ashcroft, KCMG, spoke of his desire to continue the campaign’s good work and its importance in bringing UK fugitives to justice.

Operation Captura is a great example of this policing and security cooperation in action.

It shows that by working imaginatively and flexibly together we can stop criminals in their tracks and bring to bear the full force of the law.”

Members of the public in Spain can give information anonymously on criminals wanted by Crimestoppers using the dedicated Spanish line 900 555 111 or by visiting www.crimestoppers-uk.es. www.crimestoppers-uk.org / / 0800 555 111

WINTER 2012 11

ISSUE 10 // FEATURES

Youth take on their peers Fearless goes West In July 2011 over twenty delegates from a number of youth organisations united in Bristol for a seminar organised

by West Country Crimestoppers for local youth workers to promote the understanding of Fearless.

The event is part of a larger initiative welcoming youth organisations to become involved in the promotion of Fearless. Attendees commented that they found the event useful and that

Steps to safer streets The community of Hemel Hempstead in Hertfordshire was hit with tragedy in November 2011 when a young man was stabbed to death. Crimestoppers volunteers took positive action following the incident by teaming up with young people in the area with the aim of encouraging them to play an active role in keeping their communities safe.

Crimestoppers visited Cavendish School for a dedicated sixth form assembly to highlight the work of the charity and to teach students how they can use the service to help tackle crime.

Speaking after the assembly, 17-yearold pupil Danielle Town said: “I didn’t realise it was available.

Kilmarnock FC kicks crime

12 WINTER 2012

they would promote Fearless to their respective youth groups in the future.

Following from the success of the seminar, Gordon Chisholm, Development Officer for West Country Crimestoppers, was approached by Avon and Somerset Constabulary police whose Youth Team are now promoting Fearless in their “Play Your Part” scheme that reaches 2,500 pupils from around 12 different senior schools a year. This working partnership is set to run throughout 2012.

Stuff happens outside my house a lot, and I think my mum would be happier if she could report stuff to something like Crimestoppers.”

Fellow pupil Tom Byrne, 17, said: “I think I’d prefer to call Crimestoppers to the police, otherwise you’d end up getting mixed up in court cases etc.”

Volunteers from the school’s sixth form have since been invited to put a project together with the aims of highlighting the availability of Crimestoppers and the work the charity does, and directing young people towards the Fearless website. The project will see students proactively fighting crime in their local area, showing how the charity can empower young people to make their communities safer.

Post-16 learning mentor at Cavendish School, Julie Cattermole, said: “We’re very community spirited here and all the students care about the town they live in.”

More than a hundred first-year pupils from Auchenharvie Academy, Stevenston, were joined by others from St Matthew’s and Ardrossan Academies for the Fearless launch in the Scottish town. Kilmarnock Football Club’s first team player and Cameroon international, Patrick Ada, showed his support for the campaign by attending the event,

University volunteer Zoe

Young Crimestoppers volunteers are being trained to take the Fearless package into 30 schools across the West Midlands. This new initiative will see the programme delivered to young people by young people themselves. The campaign aims to empower young people when facing difficult decisions and having younger individuals involved will utilise their ability to easily relate and communicate with their peers. £7,500 has been donated from the Police Authority for the new campaign following a proposal from the Crimestoppers West Midlands committee.

Fearless university volunteer Zoe said: “Fearless is an important brand for 11-16-year-olds to introduce them to the valuable service that Crimestoppers provides.

I am looking forward to working with Fearless in helping to educate young people across the West Midlands on crime and Crimestoppers as it will be a valuable investment for the present and the future.”

signing autographs and posing for pictures with the pupils.

Speaking at the launch, National Manager for Scotland, Kate Jackson, said: “One of the key reasons for launching Crimestoppers across the area for young people is to empower them to be ‘Fearless’ in passing on information about crime anonymously.”

ISSUE 10 // FEATURES

e m i r c s t shoo Mishmak Youth Theatre volunteers

During the two days of filming, various members of the drama group offered up their views to questions posed

by Crimestoppers around youth stereotypes, gang culture and the perception of sharing information on crime in today’ s young society.

What benefits do you think will come out of your friends and schoolmates seeing this video?

Katie; I think for my friends, and even for me now, it will make us think before approaching strangers and properly think about the advice we give to each other.

Courtney-Jade; I think my friends will react quite positively as it will make them more cautious by seeing this happen to someone their own age and someone they recognise. It makes it real that it can happen. Sometimes you watch stories on the news about things youths end up involved in and you think it will never happen to you, but when you see things like this it hits home that it can happen to anyone.

Blake; This film definitely makes it more realistic that gang culture is so easy to accidentally get involved in so it’s really good that we are being made more aware.

www.crimestoppers-uk.org / / 0800 555 111

m a Surrey o fr ls a u id iv d in 11 ten young ishmak, volunteered their 0 2 r e b m e v o In N eatre called M e filming of the most th th u o y d e s ba lved in th o v in t e g cond Fearless e s to e d h T . n o ti weeken c that some s film produ recent Fearles in 2012 explores the fact to criminal film launching can easily be influenced inrmity of the young people without realising the eno s in. activity, ofteny may well find themselve situations the Has taking part in this filming affected you or changed your attitude about the topic or giving information on crime?

Kelly; It has made me really think about how scary it would be to be put in that position with a stranger pulling up to you in a car. On the other hand I feel a lot safer as this has made me think about how I’d react and knowing now that through Fearless me and my friends can look out for each other safely. I didn’t know that option was there before.

Katie; Yeah knowing it’s anonymous makes you feel really secure.

How do you think youth nowadays are viewed in the UK? Stenious; I think people forget that it’s not just youth that are involved in crime, and also we as youth are also victims to crime.

People forget that because of so many stories of the riots and stuff so we all just get stereotyped under one name.

Katie; We’re not all the same.

I think it depends on what you’re exposed to when you’re young, like I’m sure a lot of youth who got involved in the riots, if they were a part of this today they would think about things and

their actions differently. With Mishmak we have things to keep us busy outside of school and keep us out of trouble. If you’re stuck with the same negative group you’ll always think the same way as them, it’s good for us to be exposed to other positive open minded people our age.

Letitia; That’s why I think there should be more youth groups like ours for other youth to have things to do and not be so likely to get involved in the wrong kind of things, even though some people wouldn’t bother to go.

Charlie; I know people who were involved in the riots and they didn’t get involved because of any beliefs or anything, they just got drawn into the pack. If the dangers of getting involved in these things were made more aware, I think it’s less likely youth would get involved. This video helps show youth that there are so many dangers in getting involved in the wrong things.

We’re not all mobsters.

Katie; Youth change youth opinions, so hopefully the outcome of today will have a positive impact.

WINTER 2012 13

ISSUE 10 // REGIONAL NEWS

Humberside Crimestoppers D

Humberside Crimestoppers helped support the launch of the successful Humberside Drink Driving Event which saw Humberside Police arrange for a professional racing driver to drive the ‘Crimestoppers car’ through a series of routines to test the ability of the driver to manoeuvre the car safely.

North Lincolnshire Community Safe ty Partnership representatives with Humberside Crimestoppers Cha irs and Police Co-ordinator

Breaking the wall of silence over drink driving

The challenge was given a twist as, during the course of the morning, the driver was deliberately intoxicated under controlled conditions to witness the deterioration of his driving skills in order to highlight the affects of drink driving.

Dave Hunter, Crimestoppers’ North East Regional Manager, said: “Humberside Crimestoppers are going from strength to strength and have attracted significant support from very senior parties across the Humberside region. On the committee are several influential community faces who are making their experiences and presence felt across the Force area. You always get a ‘wow’ when you walk into a committee, there is such an air of determination and expectation that together we can really make things happen!”

Essex Crimestoppers D

ESSEX GOES Essex Crimestoppers once again worked hard to be able to offer a set of VIP camping tickets for the V Festival in Chelmsford, teaming up with Heart FM to promote the competition which has proven to be successful in driving more people to the Essex pages of the Crimestoppers website.

1,300 people who entered the competition. Sarah and a friend got to see all the backstage action and experienced the festival as a VIP. Sarah said: “The V Festival was amazing, we had an awesome time.

The day started off at the 4 Music stage seeing D12, Noisettes and a bit of Ocean Colour Scene before moving to the main stage to see Ellie Goulding, who has an amazing voice.

Significantly, Heart FM commented that the Crimestoppers-led competition generated a higher uptake than most of their other competitions and they would be happy to work with the charity again.

This year’s lucky winner was Sarah Pearson of Wivenhoe, Essex who won the tickets and was picked from over 14 WINTER 2012

Eastern Regional Manager Ann Scot t with winner Sarah Pearson

“We finished the day off back at the main stage to see Rihanna and Eminem who were incredible and who was the definite highlight of the day.

I look forward to having the chance to win tickets again next year.”

ISSUE 10 // REGIONAL NEWS

West Midlands and East Midlands Crimestoppers D

Asian gold theft targeted during Eid and Diwali With concern rising regarding the number of thefts of Asian gold around the time of Eid and Diwali, West Midlands Crimestoppers delivered 15,000 informative leaflets to households across Birmingham, an initiative funded by the Birmingham Community Safety Partnership.

Several thousand Eid cards were also distributed thanking those in Asian communities for their help in giving information to the charity.

The campaign was launched because Asian gold is a particular target for thieves and burglars as it is usually 24-carat and a pure metal and therefore attractive to criminals when gold prices are high.

A community event was also held by East Midlands Crimestoppers in Leicester with the theme of keeping Asian gold jewellery safe over the festival of Diwali.

The event was attended by representatives from various businesses and community leaders including Chief Constable Simon Cole and Regional Patron, Vic Sethi.

Crime of this nature increases around times of celebration with more people wearing their gold instead of keeping it in their homes, which results in more incidents where jewellery is stolen from people in the street.

Hertfordshire Crimestoppers D

Bowled over

by Hertfordshire Crimestoppers win Cricket enthusiasts cheered on members of the Hertfordshire Crimestoppers committee as they took on Hertfordshire Police Authority in a cricket match fundraiser.

With both desperate for a win after a draw the previous year, the exciting match ended with the team of community participants beating the police authority team by 10 runs allowing them to claim a cash prize.

The community cricket day, which was sponsored by Hertfordshire Crimestoppers, was held at Watford Town Cricket Club.

DDurham & Kent Crimestoppers

Making an appointment with crime Both the Durham and Kent committees have issued eye catching Crimestoppers appointment cards across their regions in recent months.

Over 25,000 of these were distributed across County Durham into doctors’ waiting rooms and similar places where ‘free’ appointment cards could be utilised.

As well as the appointment cards, Durham have been working on a series of fundraising calendars which they and other partners have been selling around the region which with the help of local businessman Alasdair MacConachie, makes 100 per cent profit on every sale. Durham are on course to achieve £2,500 in early 2012. West Midlands Crimestoppers have also successfully executed this calendar imitative in recent months.

WINTER 2012 15

ISSUE 10 // REGIONAL NEWS

West Midlands Crimestoppers D

Criminals’ money used to fund drugs campaign

West Midlands Crimestoppers made a resourceful move in the fight against crime by targeting drug dealers in a campaign funded by other criminals.

The year-long campaign, launched in July, is funded by the ‘proceeds of crime’ and is supported by communities across East Birmingham.

The communities of Washwood Heath, Sparkhill and Sparkbrook among others are being encouraged to ring the charity about drug dealers and other criminals through the campaign, which features radio adverts, branded billboards and a large distribution of post cards with Crimestoppers’ key messages and encourages the public to ‘stop drugs destroying your community.’

Pauline Hadley, West Midlands Regional Manager said: “To be able to use the proceeds of crime to fund crimefighting initiatives is a benefit to us all, particularly whilst we remain in a challenging economy. The campaign uses money made from criminal activity to help catch other criminals.”

Over £45 million worth of drugs seized from the streets

Since the start of the campaign over £45 million worth of drugs has been seized from the streets, and a father and son that were arrested were jailed for over 20 years for drug related offences.

London Crimestoppers D

Tackling gun and knife crime in Newham In Autumn last year, Crimestoppers joined forces with Newham Council in unveiling a reward scheme targeting gun and knife-related crime in the borough.

Cash rewards of £150 were offered to anyone who gave information about knife or gun crime in Newham that led to an arrest and charge. The scheme was facilitated by Crimestoppers due to the charity’s renowned expertise in handling information about crime and administering anonymous rewards for vital information.

16 WINTER 2012

Crimestoppers recognises that some individuals have personal pressures that may prevent them from being seen to give information. The charity provides a way that any individual can come forward, to do the right thing for their conscience and their own community.

Six arrests

ISSUE 10 // REGIONAL NEWS

Thames Valley Crimestoppers D

Thames Valley Crimestoppers tackles burglaries in Oxfordshire Residents in South Oxfordshire and The Vale of White Horse were urged to become ‘enlightened’ in November as Crimestoppers teamed up with the South and Vale Community Safety Partnership to roll out a campaign to target burglars.

Homeowners were delivered publicity during the monthlong campaign containing clear and simple messages on how to deter burglars, as well as informing residents about a safe and anonymous means of passing on information about who is breaking into local homes.

Simple measures such as leaving your lights on while out of the house were suggested as part of the campaign, especially with the shorter days and longer nights on the horizon.

Julia Hughes, Projects co-ordinator for Thames Valley Crimestoppers, outlined how local people had “a key role” to play in keeping their community safe from burglars, through contacting Crimestoppers anonymously and by following the suggested measures in the campaign.

D Gloucestershire Crimestoppers

Gloucestershire campaign sees burglars behind bars Nine thieves were arrested after Gloucestershire Crimestoppers launched a ‘Beat the Burglar’ campaign to reduce burglary levels within Cheltenham town centre’s Local Policing Area (LPA) which is known as a burglary hotspot. The campaign involved attempting to change the mindset of burglars by publishing victims’ stories and promoting Crimestoppers rewards of up to £1,000 that are available for information from the public that leads to an arrest and charge.

Along with the significant number of arrests, a seven per cent drop in thefts from homes was recorded following the launch of the three-month campaign.

Gloucestershire Crimestoppers co-ordinator, Julia Richardson said: “On average there are 314 house burglaries every three months in Cheltenham and 143 were recorded in Gloucester during 2010/11, so the 7.2 per cent drop following the campaign is a remarkable achievement and a result everyone can be proud of.”

Suffolk Crimestoppers D

Batman & Robbers Batman made a guest appearance in Lowestoft to help crack down on burglars in the town. The caped crusader was part of a Suffolk Crimestoppers campaign to encourage the people of Lowestoft to share information anonymously about burglaries and who is handling stolen goods in their community.

The theme of the campaign united the superhero with Crimestoppers as, like Batman, those who contact the charity with information are fighting crime without revealing their identity.

More than 20,000 homes in Lowestoft were sent postcards at the end of 2011 as part of the campaign which aimed to cut the number of burglaries and increase the amount of information received about this crime type. The first postcard asked if residents knew anything about any burglaries and the second postcard asked if they had information about anyone handling stolen goods.

The third postcard told residents about Crimestoppers’ reward system of up to £1,000 for information which leads to the arrest and charge of those responsible for burglaries or handling stolen goods.

Crimestoppers’ Eastern Regional Manager, Ann Scott talked about the affects of these crimes: “Being burgled is not just about losing possessions, it also robs you of feeling safe in your own home. People should be able to feel secure and confident in their homes. No one has anything to fear by contacting Crimestoppers. You will remain anonymous.”

WINTER 2012 17

ISSUE 10 // REGIONAL NEWS

Leicestershire Crimestoppers D

Guernsey Crimestoppers D

Taking major strides to fight crime Crimestoppers supporter Damion Nickerson completed the incredible feat of running over 150 miles across Leicestershire & Rutland in just six days to raise money for the charity.

The run, dubbed by Damion as his “ridiculous challenge,” involved starting at a different base each day, such as a district council office or the Leicestershire Police headquarters, and racing back to County Hall where Damion works for the Community Safety Team.

Damion commented: “At the end of the run I couldn’t actually believe I’d finished. I was so exhausted and felt so drained, I think I’d forgotten to celebrate the achievement. It didn’t hit home really until I started to receive texts from everyone telling me how proud they were.”

So far Damion has raised £650 for the charity and donations continue to come in. Further proving his dedication to supporting Crimestoppers, Damion will be running 26.2 miles on 22 April as a member of the 2012 Virgin London Marathon Crimestoppers Team.

Show your support by making a donation at www.justgiving.com/Damion-Nickerson

rutland

Crimestoppers hotline inspires Kayak Challenge The inaugural Crimestoppers Kayak Challenge was launched by the Guernsey committee this year to help increase the profile of the charity whilst also raising money for the community. Guernsey Crimestoppers challenged participants to make the 28 mile voyage around the island in kayaks within 8 Hours 55 minutes and 11 seconds – a feat inspired by charity’s hotline number.

The event was overwhelmingly popular with 75 applicants eager to take on the challenge but, for safety reasons, places were limited to 24 - with all participants required to undertake training, including rescue procedures from Outdoor Guernsey, whose qualified instructors accompanied the group on the day. Those who took part in the challenge were a mixture of young and old, fit and not-so-fit, male and female, but mostly kayaking novices.

All 24 participants completed the challenge within the target time despite facing thick fog, which meant satellite navigation had to be used to find the finishing point.

A corporate initiative in which 28 businesses paid £111 to sponsor a kayak was also coordinated, generating an additional £3,000. In total, over £20,000 was raised for a variety of charities.

Leicestershire

18 WINTER 2012

Other Crimestoppers Challenge events arranged locally have included a Runway Walk at Guernsey Airport which raised £10,000 for local charities and the Crimestoppers 10 Pin Bowling Challenge, where entrants attempted to score 0800555111.

ISSUE 10 // REGIONAL NEWS

Scotland Crimestoppers D

Scotland Crimestoppers go green With a number of illegal waste contractors being set up across Scotland, Scotland Crimestoppers have taken the initiative to challenge those involved.

These contractors are operating without the relevant licences, procedures and equipment in place. Many people are unaware of the effects of illegal operation waste - particularly hazardous waste - which has the potential to cause serious harm to the environment, wildlife and human health.

As part of the campaign, Scotland Crimestoppers were active in educating the public that any business in Scotland that transports, treats or disposes of any type of waste must have a waste permit or be registered with the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA).

Sussex Crimestoppers D

Brighton rocks to Crimestoppers success Sussex Crimestoppers held a murder mystery evening on 25 November at landmark hotel, The Grand in Brighton, Sussex Chief Constable raising more Martin Richards with than £15,000 Mrs Richards for the charity.

The event followed the success of the 2010 murder mystery evening, which raised £7,000. The event proved so popular that the committee was able to hold the evening on a far larger scale in its second year, and in doing so, raised more than double the amount of the previous year.

The theme of the murder mystery evening – based around the Mods and Rockers invasion of the seaside town during the 1960s – was inspired by one of its co-patrons, best-selling crime novelist Peter James, to give it a unique twist.

Kathy Burke, Chair of Sussex Crimestoppers, said: “The evening truly ‘rocked’ and we are absolutely delighted to have doubled the amount raised this year. We are so grateful for all the support we received from the residents, businesses and organisations of Sussex who helped make the evening so special.”

Waste crime costs the public millions of pounds each year to investigate and clean up, as well as undermining legitimate waste businesses which lose valuable business to illegal operators. Scotland Crimestoppers is serious about putting a stop to this crime type. Research also shows that serious organised crime groups are moving into the waste business, using sites as a front for more serious forms of crime such as money laundering and drugs trafficking.

The operations targeted included illegal landfill sites, unlicensed skip hire operators and the large scale and persistent dumping of waste, amongst other harmful activities.

Charlotte Elizabeth St James with author and Sussex Crimestoppers co-patron Pete r James and Faith Johnstone

WINTER 2012 19

ISSUE 10 // REGIONAL NEWS

West Country Crimestoppers D

Best year for festive fundraiser Over 130 diners gathered at The Ramada Bristol City Hotel, enjoying an evening of sumptuous food, top prizes and bingo at the annual West Country Crimestoppers Christmas dinner fundraiser.

The evening was a great success, with over £2,500 raised for the committee – the largest amount in the three years the event has been running.

The raffle this year exceeded previous years with more than 35 raffle prizes including hot air balloon flights courtesy of Exclusive Ballooning, a Wallace & Gromit book signed by co-founder of Aardman Animations, Peter Lord, and a We Will Rock You poster signed by Brian May courtesy of The Bristol Hippodrome. Other lucky diners were treated to prizes of a Kindle, two televisions and a portable DVD player generously donated by Argos.

20 WINTER 2012

Volunteer Committee members Dev Chakraborty and Harriette Dottridge with Gordon Chisholm.

West Country Crimestoppers Development Officer, Gordon Chisholm said: “Everyone has had a fantastic evening and we’ve raised a tremendous amount for the charity at the same time. A big thank you to the committee members who helped to make this event a success, the only problem will be, how can we make it bigger and better next year?”