NewsBeat - Community News from Lincolnshire Police

The following information is published for both local residents and tourist information covering local issues that will be helpful to all. Please visit often for latest information for major traffic issues and other information..

Editors:
Inspector Steve Hill Sgt Andy Hickinbottom	Pc Paula Franklin, PCSO’s Craig Lymer, Keith Clarke, Katie Taylor, Debra Remnant, Dave Bunker and Lucy Morris	Pc Seb Clarke, PCSO’s John Gray, Steve Bowmar, Chris Wood and Dave Campion

Inspector Steve Hill

P.C. Seb. Clarke

P.C. Paula Franklin

**** Welcome to NewsBeat - latest information from Skegness Branch of Lincolnshire Police *****

Welcome to the February edition of the NPT Newsletter. I know it’s a different format but I’ve had a number of complaints that some are having difficulty in accessing the PowerPoint format. As the idea is to get this out to as many as possible, I have changed it to Word. Your views will be appreciated. This month I have news on priority areas, recent crimes and some crime prevention news.

Firstly, I can report on three operations this month that have targeted underage drinking and drug abuse. A test purchase operation, conducted in partnership with Trading Standards, targeted 11 premises in the Skegness, Winthorpe and Ingoldmells area into the selling of alcohol to under 18’s. Of the 11 premises checked, 5 sold alcohol to 16yr olds. A fine of £80 has been imposed and the licenses for those premises are now seriously under review.

Running in conjunction with this operation is the seizure of alcohol from under 18yr olds who are engaged in drinking in the street and committing Anti-Social Behaviour. Alcohol can also be seized from over 18’s if they are supplying those under that age. This Operation has been running since the 8th of February and concluded on the 23rd.

Members of the team and Operational Officers have also been checking pub and club-goers with the use of a drugs dog, searching those identified. Only one male was cautioned for cannabis, which is an excellent result as it shows a downtrend in the number of people willing to engage in the abuse of drugs.

At the end of last month we held an open meeting to set up the first ever Winthorpe Neighbourhood Panel. 30 residents attended the Seathorne Community Centre and, as a result, the NPT have adopted a Problem Solving Plan in order to combat the ASB caused by the youth of the area. This Plan will look at addressing the issue to the satisfaction of the residents and I would like to thank all those who attended, as their presence will make a difference to that community.

Extract from Octobers Beatnews
Retail and leisure premises have just been involved in Operation ARGUS which has been delivered by the National Counter Terrorism Security Office, Special Branch and ourselves. Insp Steve Hill, Pc Paula Franklin, PCSO’s Craig Lymer and Dave Bunker assisted in delivering the message to a gathering of both Skegness and Louth retail and leisure managers. It deals with the threat to the UK from terrorism and the role that we all have to play in it. It was very well received by all that attended and was designed to increase awareness as well as inform as to procedures that follow. Metropolitan areas are becoming hard targets for attack and we’ve seen a shifting trend where the targets have moved away from the capital. Although we are in an area of a very low threat assessment, the national assessment is the highest it’s been and we all need to be aware of suspicious activities and report them immediately.
The problem solving plan in relation to the seizure of counterfeit goods in Ingoldmells has been concluded. Seb Clarke and his team joined forces with Trading Standards and arrested 15 people, seized 34,900 items to a total value of £330,583 and 11,000 items of clothing with a street value in excess of £300,000 and a retail value in excess of £1000,000. This is a fantastic result as the selling of pirated goods has been linked to all levels of criminal activity.

This is a warning for all recipients as to a Christmas Postal Scam. A card is posted through he door from a company called PDS (Parcel Delivery Service) suggesting that they were unable to deliver a parcel and that you need to contact them on 0906 6611911. This is a premium rate number and originates in Belize.

If you call the number you will hear a recorded message. You will already have been billed £15 for the phone call. If you do receive a card then please contact Royal Mail Fraud on 0207 2396655.

Another crime trend that is creeping into Lincolnshire is the monitoring of bank card details at ATM’s. We are advising people to thoroughly check the area above the screen for small cameras (a quick wipe round with the hand should do). If you do find one, as has recently happened in Boston, I advise you not to remove it and to call 999 as the identity thieves will be in the area watching the ATM.

Andy Hickinbottom