Criminals turning rural areas into a ‘war zone’
Police in Kent are powerless to stop a scourge of hare coursing, threats of violence, and thefts hitting the farming community, the minutes of a secret meeting have revealed.
Earlier this year, more than 80 farmers from across Kent met with senior officers from Kent Police, and representatives of the National Farmers’ Union, to discuss the ongoing issues. The minutes of the meeting, which have not been publicly disclosed, reveal an admission by officers that their “hands are tied” by a lack of resources and increasing demand. The 101 crime reporting phone number was also criticised as being slow and often manned by inexperienced staff.
Insp Dave Smith, of Kent Police’s Rural Task Force, told farmers rural crime is now “largely run by organised criminals who are potentially violent”, and that current laws are “out of date and not fit for purpose”.
One member of the farming community told the Kent Messenger: “There’s no point trying to confront the criminals because we’ll come off worse. It’s like a war zone. It’s like a lawless society. They’re almost untouchable.”
The NFU’s Combating Rural Crime report, published in July 2017, detailed how farmers across the country are repeatedly falling victim to thefts, intimidation, arson and vandalism, and hare coursing.
Another farmer, who owns thousands of acres of land across Kent, said that incidences of hare coursing have “grown out of control”, and that the animal’s existence could be under threat. Coursers also damage crops by driving across fields in cars.
At the meeting, police detailed their ongoing efforts to tackle rural crime, known as Operation Salmon, and said that they plan to double the number of dedicated rural officers from six to 12. Farmers were advised to report crimes quickly, and to install dashcams in their vehicles to try to capture footage of criminals.