LAYING Lockdown restrictions still remain in place
WITH DIVISIONAL COMMANDER CHIEF SUPERINTENDENT ALAN MURRAY
It is probably worth highlighting that although the First Minister has given an indication of how lockdown restrictions may be eased in the future, the regulations and guidance regarding socialdistancing remain pretty much as they have been since lockdown commenced.
The only exception being that the restriction on the number of times you can leave your home for exercise have been lifted.
House parties with people from different households in attendance and social gatherings in public places such as parks are still considered unsafe.
As usual, your local police officers and community wardens will be out and about to explain the regulations and give advice when required.
We will only use enforcement options when there is no reasonable alternative.
I am very grateful for your continuing patience and support for my officers.
We had a very mean-spirited crime in Howwood last
Monday when a member of the public saw two males acting suspiciously in the vicinity of the chapel house of Christ the King Parish Church.
The eagle-eyed passerby immediately informed the parish priest who was, at that time, in the church buildings. Upon attending the chapel house, the priest discovered that someone had been in and stolen £200 in church donations.
The matter was reported to local community officers who quickly identified two males, aged 39 and 48, as the people responsible.
The perpetrators, who both came from Ayrshire, have since been arrested.
This was a good bit of detective work from the community officers involved but were it not for the vigilance of the member of the public the culprits might never have been caught.
If you ever see anything suspicious please do not hesitate to give us a phone. This regularly leads directly to arrests.
Another cautionary tale about bogus callers, albeit this time with a relatively happy ending.
Last Saturday a 76-year-old man living in Johnstone was visited by a young woman who was known to him. After a short time she left and the next day he realised she had taken a significant sum of money with her.
I would ask everyone, but particularly the elderly, to be very careful about who you let into your house and if you have any doubts at all do not let them over the threshold.
You cannot be too careful. Fortunately, on this occasion, the thief was quickly caught and will be the subject of a report to the Procurator Fiscal.
Finally, I mentioned last week that we had a number of complaints about speeding in various residential locations in Renfrewshire.
As a consequence, local officers carried out a series of speed checks to deter such dangerous driving.
Three drivers were issued with speeding tickets and a number warned and educated about the dangers of speeding.
We will be carrying out more speed checks over the coming days so I would urge you to watch your speed and stay safe on the roads.