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“If in doubt, keep them out”
"If in doubt - keep them out" is the message from police for people faced with cold callers and dubious doorstep tradesmen.
February saw the start of a month long operation targeting doorstep crime, bogus callers and rogue traders through operational police work and crime prevention advice.
Over recent months, police have had reports of people pretending to be from organisations, such as the water board or utility companies, to get access to homes and steal from inside.
In other cases people have knocked on the door saying building work needs doing to their home and then charging extortionate prices.
These people can often seem very believable and use all sorts of stories to trick their way into people’s homes and either con them out of money or steal from them.
Offenders often target the elderly and vulnerable and people really need to be on their guard against this sort of activity.
The best advice is to never hand money over to someone who cold-calls at your home, and never let them inside. Anyone calling from an official organisation will happily wait or come back while you check their identification.
Look out for your relatives and neighbours and if you do see any suspicious vehicles or people in your neighbourhood you should report this to police as soon as possible.”
Police operation costs released
Northumbria announced the costs so far of Operation Bulwark, the police search for Raoul Moat.
Moat shot and killed Christopher Brown and injured Samantha Stobbart in the early hours of Saturday, 3 July, 2010. He then shot and seriously injured PC David Rathband early on Sunday, 4 July.
A massive search was launched to find Moat involving hundreds of officers, both from Northumbria and many other forces, which culminated on Friday, 9 July, when he was discovered in Rothbury.
The costs may increase slightly due to current and future legal proceedings.
The total cost from the first shootings on 3 July until the present time stands at £1.41million.
The Home Office has confirmed that it will contribute £449,000 to the overall cost of the operation.
Silver goblet's owner sought
Among the everyday items of property handed in to police, one or two always catch the eye.
In February, police in Gateshead appealed for the owner of a silver goblet to come forward after the item was handed in.
The goblet, which is thought to be solid silver, was handed into police but enquires to trace its owner have so far proved unsuccessful.
Officers are now appealing for the owner, or anyone who knows where it might have come from, to contact them.
It is a silver goblet or chalice which may have come from a church or a religious house and was handed in after being found in the Chowdene Bank area of Gateshead.
Anyone with information about who it belongs to is asked to contact Northumbria Police by telephoning 03456 043 043 or by minicom on 01661 820915.
