CRIMESTOPPERS is an independent UK-wide charity working to stop crime and is unique in that it provides a completely anonymous link to the Police. It has been active in Hampshire and the Isle of Wight for over ten years, but many people are still unsure of what it does and how it works.

 Call Crimestoppers if you -

• Detailed information is essential e.g. hard facts such as a name/address/vehicle registration or phone number
• Currently only one call in 6 has enough information to be effective
• Last year Crimestoppers passed over 1200 calls to Hampshire Constabulary
• Arrest rate uncertain but at least 127 people put behind bars in Hampshire and the Isle of Wight
• Threecalls in ten result in cautions, warnings or disruption of crime
• Tell Crimestoppers what you know, not who you are

Some examples of successes-

• A call about a hit and run Road Traffic incident resulted in 3 people being arrested for the offence
• Information was received suggesting a female would be travelling by train to London to collect a large quantity of drugs, with specific times and description. Police  attended and seized Heroin with a street value of £40,000
• A call giving the whereabouts of a fork lift truck stolen from a farm the previous week resulted in Police recovering a JCB, valued at £100,000
• Information received by London Crimestoppers gave the details of a male in possession of a Porsche. Police   attended the address given and recovered the car, valued at approx £50,000. The number plates had been switched twice

It can take a few days for information to be passed through, so Crimestoppers is no replacement for a 999 call in an emergency

TELEPHONE SCAMS

These are still rife. Beware anyone asking you to press a key, usually 9, after  saying you have won a prize. This will end up with you paying an exorbitant rate for the call. Even if you put the phone down at this point you could remain     connected for 5 minutes. Beware too of ‘missed calls’ on mobiles, especially from numbers starting 0709. Calling back may be at £50 a minute !

WOULD YOU LET ANY OF THESE PEOPLE INTO YOUR HOME ?

Check them out first

·       Check any callers’ ID badges thoroughly. If they do not have a photograph, refuse to let them in until you verify their identity with the organisation they purport to represent. 

·       Elderly residents should keep chains on their doors while checking ID badges. Don't feel bad about asking them to pass their cards through the door, and if they won't, just shut the door. 

·       Most ID cards will have a number to ring for the company where the person works. Just say you will be a moment and ring that number. If the company does not recognise the member of staff, then note their description and phone the police. 

·       Most canvassers have "the gift of the gab", but remember it is YOUR home and you are entitled to  refuse entry to anyone you do not know. 

·       Utility companies like Gas, Electric and Water will have contact details for you, so if you believe the person at your door is not who they say they are, send them away with a request that they write to you instead. 

·        If for any reason, the person at your door tries to gain access by coercion then calmly ask them to leave. If they persist then either ring 999 or shout "Fire!" to attract a neighbour’s attention.

POLICE COMMUNITY SUPPORT OFFICERS (PCSOs)

One One of the 26 PCSOs recently deployed across Hampshire will be based in Alresford, although she will work mainly in King’s Worthy and Colden Common. 

PCSOs are utilized as any other Police employee, i.e. have duties changed to suit operational needs. They can be used for major operations at public gatherings, e.g.   Trafalgar 200, Homelands. On a day-to-day basis they are expected to address problems such as - 

Cycling on the footpath:   Dog fouling:  Littering:   Fly posting: Graffiti:  Throwing fireworks:  Insulting or abusive behaviour:        Consumption of alcohol in a designated public place and other alcohol related offences 

PCSOs have the power to detain a person for up to 30     minutes and can also be used for taking crime reports and making missing person enquiries.

VISITING A BEAUTY SPOT ? 

• Close the roof, lock the doors, boot  and  windows when you leave the car - no matter for how short a time. 

• Remove the stereo if you can. Also tuck in wing mirrors and put the aerial down to discourage vandals. 

• Never store your car's documents in the car. 

• Display the laminated yellow COBRA stickers the Police are distributing where they observe visible valuables. This will confirm there is nothing of value left in your vehicle

• Don’t  put your valuables under the seat or in the boot as you leave the vehicle. 

• Keep your car keys in a safe place, even in your house, so that if someone does break in they cannot steal your car too.

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USEFUL CONTACTS

ALRESFORD POLICE STATION ENQUIRY DESK

Information on crime       prevention and all Police services.

    Constabulary Column

Update from  Alresford’s Sergeant Andy Hewar

SECTOR POLICING

Each local Officer now has specific responsibility for an area and in due course every organisation in that area will have the individual contact name made known to them. The    Officers are:- 

PC Gary McKernon, who will be dedicating most of his duty time to foot patrol in Alresford town  and PC Steve Dicker.

Kings Worthy
PC Mike Chappell, who will patrol by bicycle, PC’s Lynn Owen, Jane Brookes and Alexandra Stanford.

All emergency response is being provided from the new Response teams based in Winchester, backed up by local sector Officers when necessary.

The effectiveness of NHW in Alresford and surrounding areas is most impressive. For example the number of calls received from residents when suspicious sellers are doing the rounds. The last group of ‘Nottingham knockers’ (actually from Staines this time), generated nearly a dozen calls in an hour and a half. A couple of males were checked and sent on their way by Police, while a third was arrested as wanted by another force. Impossible without vigilant NHW householders.

SMOKE ALARMS

Check your smoke alarms to see if the batteries are  working. If not, replace them. This could be a matter of life or death, so please do it.

INTERNET CRIME 

This is very time consuming and extremely difficult to  investigate. Several cases under investigation involved fraudulent E-Bay transactions. Members of the public    obviously need to take care and apply a degree of         common sense, not parting with money without some   guarantee that the goods will turn up.

ASSOCIATION NEWS 

Chairman Philip Millward has moved away from         Alresford. The previous Vice Chairman, Rob Fellows, has been elected by the committee to  the top role, with Chris Webb as Vice Chairman. 

The 2005 AGM will be held on November 10th in the ‘Goods Shed’. More information nearer the date.