Operation Festive Launched In Hereford

On Wednesday 30 November, an operation will be launched which aims to prevent crime in Hereford city centre as Christmas approaches and also provide reassurance to shoppers who are out and about in High Town.

The operation - named Operation Festive - will run on every Wednesday evening in the build-up to Christmas so that it coincides perfectly with late night Christmas shopping in Hereford city centre.

The operation - which is being launched in partnership with Herefordshire Council and the city centre Retailers Association - will not only see an increase in high visibility patrols in the city centre on Wednesday evenings, but also the use of a small team of plain clothes officers out on the streets aiming to catch any individuals committing shoplifting or ‘purse dipping' offences.

Speaking about Operation Festive, Sergeant Emma Freer from the Hereford City Local Policing Team said:

"We are working in partnership with the Herefordshire Council's CCTV Management Team and the Retailers Association to launch Operation Festive and hope that it will increase public confidence and provide additional reassurance to shoppers in the city.

"A rise in the number of people shopping inevitably leads to the possibility thieves will increase their activity but we are hopeful that this operation will act as a deterrent to criminals. Certainly the fact that we will have a more visible present in the city centre should make thieves feel particularly uncomfortable.

"We are also hopeful that our plain clothes officers will be able to identify and arrest any individuals who are carrying out offences.

"In addition to the operation in the city centre itself, we will also be carrying out ANPR (Automatic Numberplate Recognition) operations on the main routes into and out of the city centre.

"The ANPR camera systems will allow us to target travelling criminals who may be coming to our city to carry out crime by alerting us to - and allowing us to intercept - vehicles that pass the cameras that may have been involved in criminal activity in the past.

"I am very hopeful that Operation Festive will help ensure that people using Hereford city centre will be as safe as they can be in the weeks leading up to Christmas.

"However, I would like to remind people that they can call West Mercia Police if they see anything suspicious or have concerns about the behaviour of any individuals in the city centre.

"Anyone who would like to report anything to us is asked to call on 101 - our new non emergency phone number - or 0300 333 3000. Alternatively, in an emergency, always remember to call 999."

Issued: Tuesday 29 November 2011