Operations a success as arrests are made

It’s my first column of 2019 – so let me start by wishing you all a very happy New Year. I hope you had an enjoyable and relaxing time over the festive period.

We were absolutely delighted with the support we received from the overwhelming majority of people in Sunderland and South Tyneside over the Christmas period who helped to make our town and city centres exciting and vibrant places to be.

A lot of time, effort and resource from a policing perspective went into making sure opportunistic criminals did not thrive during the countdown to Christmas, as we looked to tackle all types of urban crime.

In Sunderland, Operation Jasper and Operation Kraken saw officers have an increased presence within the city during the day and at night to deter criminals and offer reassurance to residents and businesses.

This operation was successfully run in partnership with Sunderland Business Improvement District (BID), the Bridges and Sunderland City Council, all of whom continue to provide vital support in keeping our city centre safe. We were very pleased with the results. In total, 35 people were arrested under the Kraken banner for a range of offences, from anti-social behaviour to burglary.

Similarly in South Shields, Operation Holly proved to be a real positive as we targeted known offenders and prevented travelling criminals in their tracks. More than 20 arrests were made, ranging from drunk and disorderly, breach of court orders and burglary.

Moving forward, a New Year provides fresh initiatives – and I was delighted to see one launch in the west of Sunderland earlier this week – which you can read more about on this page.

We have received a fantastic response from the community since we piloted the DNA spray across Sunderland and South Tyneside last September to tackle anti-social behaviour caused by off-road motorbikes.

Since the launch date, we have seen a big reduction in the number of motorbike-related anti-social behaviour reports made to us. Clearly, the message is getting out there and that’s very encouraging.

But we will not rest on our laurels. This new operation, which has been launched in identified hotspot areas, intends to maintain that momentum and ensure our residents feel safe in the communities they live.