Totnes Police getting pro-active…

Update from Inspector Mark Stevens, Totnes neighbourhood police team:

December is now upon us (I’m sure much quicker than most of us expected!). This month we’d like to share an update about some of the pro-active work we’ve been doing in the community to address concerns and celebrate the hard work of our colleagues to keep people safe.

Increasing our presence across the festive season

It’s always wonderful to see the number of visitors, shoppers and families we have coming to Totnes during this time of year. Whilst it remains a safe place to visit, work and live, opportunist criminals can use this busy period to their advantage. To make sure communities feel safe, it’s important our officers are visible, approachable and pro-active during this season.

We will be pursuing offenders in relation to shoplifting, offences relating to alcohol and drug use including drink driving, domestic violence and antisocial behaviour. There will be a focus on deterring people from committing these crimes from happening in the first place, as well as arresting and pursuing offenders. You’ll see us patrolling on foot and in vehicles across peak times and locations. So whether we’re in plain clothes or uniform, we’ll be on the streets to actively identify those looking to offend.

Our officers will also be dropping by the Christmas markets to engage with the public. If you ever feel unsafe in a specific area, you see something that doesn’t look quite right, or you just want to get to know us – please stop and chat. We look forward to meeting some of you there!

Tackling drug dealing

As a result of listening to the concerns and information from our community in Totnes and surrounding areas, we’ve pro-actively targeted individuals who we suspect to be involved in dealing drugs. We recently searched of a number of properties, seizing thousands of pounds worth of class A drugs, weapons and property that was suspected to be stolen. The investigations are currently ongoing.

We will continue to take a robust approach to drug dealing in our area. If you know, suspect or have any information about drugs in our area, tell us. If we don’t know about a crime, we can’t take pro-active action. You can report online, call 101 or report 100% anonymously to Crimestoppers.

Proactive work around antisocial behaviour in our community
Antisocial behaviour (ASB) has an impact on peoples’ quality of life. Types of ASB can include continuous noise or parties, vandalism, misuse of communal areas or public spaces, criminal behaviour, alcohol-related disturbances, nuisance vehicle noise, verbal abuse, harassment, intimidation, or threatening behaviour and isn’t limited to urban areas.

We saw an increase in ASB incidents over the summer months, but I’m pleased to share that there has been a significant decline in incidents as a result of some great proactive work, patrols and operations by the neighbourhood police officers. The team have also secured a Criminal Behaviour Order against a prolific individual who caused ASB within the town, banning them from entering Totnes town for three years.

Graffiti

We recognise there is an on-going issue with graffiti appearing across the town centre. This is a criminal offence. The neighbourhood team are investigating these incidents, and we continue to work to identify and arrest the individual(s) responsible for this. We live in a beautiful, historic town and it is particularly sad to see our buildings or monuments daubed with graffiti.

If you have any information, no matter how small or unimportant you think it might be, please come forward and tell us. I’d like to remind you that if you don’t feel comfortable coming directly to us, you can share information with us anonymously via Crimestoppers.

Awards for the team

I’m proud to share that two of our fantastic Police Community Support Officers (PCSOs) are being honoured with awards. PCSO Jason Vasey will be receiving his Long Service medal, after working in the military and the police service for 20 years. PCSO Kirsty Meakin is receiving two awards: one for her bravery at a serious road traffic collision and the other for her exceptional work in supporting a victim of serious domestic violence. A huge congratulations to them both – they are truly inspiring and a real asset to Totnes and our team.