Cockfield Crimebusters

A police initiative, started two months ago at the Babergh Safer Neighbourhood Team meeting in Cockfield has resulted in remarkable success!

The meeting, which I chaired, was attended by a representative from Lavenham Parish Council.  She brought a number of issues to the attention of the Safer Neighbourhood Team, including concerns about the safety of the cricket pavilion and its contents.

As a result, Lavenham became a policing priority, which meant that routine visits to the village by the police were stepped up. 

We heard at this evening’s Team Meeting that one of the extra patrols actually caught an individual attempting to break into the pavilion.  A dramatic car chase ensued, the suspect being chased as far as the Belchamps in North Essex.  A police helicopter was called out and the individual was apprehended.

This arrest has apparently resulted in a number of leads, including those related to the thefts of catalytic converters in the area.

Over the years the Safer Neighbourhood Team Meetings have chalked up a number of successes in promoting community safety and crime prevention, but this is certainly our most dramatic and far reaching result to date.

It does show, I think, that the general public are in a good position to notice, and report, unusual events, and I hope that this will encourage more people to come along and express their concerns to the police when they have the opportunity.

The next Safer Neighbourhood Meeting will, coincidentally, be held in Lavenham on 18^th September at the Salvation Army Hall between 6 and 7 p.m.  The meetings, which are attended by the police, and sometimes by officers from other bodies, give members of the public the opportunity to express concerns about all aspects of community safety in their area.