Burglary rate falls as police target offenders

POLICE are continuing to take a hard line on the issue of burglary in Warrington despite the average number of offences falling across Cheshire.
Currently there are 10 homes burgled every day in the county, but given that almost one million people live in the region, the chances of becoming a victim of burglary are very low.
Cheshire Police are still not satisfied by these figures however, and Chief Constable Peter Fahy (pictured)wants to crack down on offenders even harder.
He said: “Burglary is reducing because we are arresting the local persistent offenders and the courts are handing out decent sentences. It is a good sign of the criminal justice system working. We have been working with partner agencies such as Trading Standards to target and disrupt the market in stolen goods. We have listened to the public who have told us that they want house burglary to be kept as a key priority for the force and that is what we intend to do. Whilst the decreasing trend is good news, the challenge still remains to reduce it further.”
Officers now believe there are two types of burglary currently rife across the region.
The first is unscrupulous criminals who prey on the vulnerable and elderly posing as workers from utilities companies to gain access to their homes and ultimately steal property.
The second is people who steal car keys from homes to drive vehicles off the path without the owner realising or the car showing any obvious signs it’s stolen.
Mr Fahy added: “Those who target the elderly and vulnerable because of their frailty are amongst the lowest of the low of the criminal fraternity. We have had some good successes in arresting some significant teams involved in this activity recently and we hope the courts will hand out exemplary sentences if they are found guilty.
“We would appeal to people not to keep large amounts of cash in the house, we do not want to see these or any other type of criminal prosper from this despicable crime. Never let strangers into your home unless you are absolutely certain that they are genuine, always ask for ID and don’t be afraid to call on the help of a neighbour, family member or the police, If in doubt, Keep them out!”