Stockport cops hunt overnight burglars with specialised resources to catch them in the act

During the last week, officers from a top local policing unit took on the night shift to catch those who thought it would be a good idea to burgle houses and steal cars ahead of Christmas.

A part of a dedicated operation in Stockport, intelligence highlighted key targets and suspects in recent serious acquisitive offences who were caught in the act. Stockport; previously the division with the highest number of vehicles stolen by means of burglary, saw dedicated officers carrying out this operation to drive numbers back down, meaning the district is now the lowest, comparatively, for residential burglaries.

This has resulted in a dramatic 50% drop in burglary committed in the last two weeks compared to that of other months.

With extra resources of around 20-30 officers from the dedicated Neighbourhood Crime Team they were ruthless in their approach to capturing key offenders and making sure swift justice is brought by doing everything they can to put them behind bars.

Joined in conjunction with neighbouring force Cheshire, their proactive policing team and specialised units from GMP, including the Tactical Vehicle Intercept Unit (TVIU), Tactical Dog Unit (TDU), additional neighbourhood teams and investigative units, the team were deployed and co-coordinated their response to known hotspot areas across Stockport, South Manchester and on the border with Cheshire.

The planned work was a great success, bringing in significant arrests and a direct reduction in crime, helping to keep local communities safe during the festive season.

With seven key targeted arrests in four days, eight charges with four remanded, two search warrants and 11 stop-searches, key incidents included:

• Monday 2 December – a 20-year-old man from the Bredbury area was arrested on suspicion of burglary, later being charged for fraud and remanded to court, whilst a 29-year-old man was arrested for driving whilst under the influence of alcohol and later bailed pending further enquiries.

• Tuesday 3 December – a 46-year-old man from Edgeley was also snared on suspicion of burglary and charged with other offences including theft of a motor vehicle and theft from a motor vehicle. He was remanded in custody for a later date at court.

• A 46-year-old man was taken into custody on suspicion of stealing from a number of motor vehicles and was subsequently sent back to prison after having his prison licence revoked for repeat offending.

• Then, in the early hours at around 4am, as most slept, a 28-year-old man from Brinnington was found hiding in his loft and arrested on suspicion of burglary from an earlier incident. He was later charged with five offences linked to this, two theft of motor vehicles and admitted to a further 13 burglaries. He was also remanded due to the serious of the offences.

• Wednesday 4 December – a 16-year-old boy who was wanted on suspicion of a series of electric bike-enabled robberies, primarily for mobile phones and carried out whilst wearing balaclavas - offences which have plagued the Stockport district - made off on foot from uniformed patrols but was later found in undergrowth near to Tiviot Dale and arrested for 27 offences. He remains in custody. More: 16-year-old charged with 8 counts of robbery in Stockport | Greater Manchester Police

• Thursday 5 December – In the afternoon, around 4:30pm, a 22-year-old man was arrested in Blackpool on suspicion of burglary that took place in Stockport, with two additional search warrants being conducted at addresses in Brinnington. He has since been charged and bailed pending a further court date.

Detective Sergeant Matt Tarr who pulled together the operation said; “This targeted work is one of the biggest cross-border operations we have conducted this year and highlights just a small amount of the great work being carried out. This showcases the hard work and dedication of the Neighbourhood Crime Team and helps provide some reassurance to those living in Stockport. The robust approach to this type of offending will continue throughout December and into the New Year, whilst we continue to monitor its success.

“We want to make it clear to criminals in the area, at a time when burglaries generally increase and can cause even more distress and upset, that we will catch you. We know who you are and we will do everything in our power to make sure you are held to account for your actions by spending Christmas in prison.

“I’d like to thank the communities who engage with us for continuing to help us in our mission to make Stockport safer for everyone. Please do remain vigilant and report your concerns, as all credible bits of information are acted on, especially when we have increased resources available to us.”

Anyone with information about crime in their area should continue to report direct through 101 or the Live Chat function on gmp.police.uk. Alternatively, details can be passed on anonymously to Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111 or through their website. Always, dial 999 in an emergency.

For further crime prevention advice, please spend some time looking through: Crime prevention advice | Greater Manchester Police

In addition to more specific information in relation to your local area, sign up for our free neighbourhood alert scheme, Bee in the Loop, at www.beeintheloop.co.uk