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Briefings from your Local Policing TeamApril 8th, 2011Good Afternoon Here's what's been happening on our area since the last briefing on 28th March Crime Trends Over last weekend, damage was caused to a heavy duty plastic shed used to store children's play equipment at a nursery at Kingstone. It appears that the door was kicked, breaking the lock and leaving the doors badly damaged and needing replacing. A Vauxhall Vivaro was stolen from a factory premises on the Thorn Business Park at Rotherwas, after 5pm on Tuesday, and was found later the same evening in a crop field in Gloucestershire. An attempt was made to enter the shop in Clehonger overnight last Saturday/Sunday, a side window was broken but entry was not gained. It is believed that someone local may have been responsible, any information would be very helpful. Between 5.30pm on Monday 4th and 7.30am Tuesday 5th, a steel storage container was broken into on a building site in Pontrilas, and a quantity of tools were taken. Items stolen include a Makita petrol disc cutter and diamond blade, a set of lifting chains and some lifting shackle. Suspicious incidents On 30th March at around lunchtime, a silver Ford Transit panel van YA06*SU was seen at a business premises in Twyford Road,Rotherwas, the occupants were offering to buy batteries. The occupants were described as two young 'traveller' types, and one got abusive when the proprietor didn't accept his offer. On Tuesday 5th April at around 8.10am in Kingsthorne, a male knocked at the door of a property, asking if there were any jobs that needed doing! He was described as a tanned white male in his late twenties/early thirties, about 5'8" with swept back hair, wearing a leather type black jacket and dark jeans. The occupier was concerned when he asked if she was going out to work that day. Police arrived soon afterwards, but there was no sign of this male. Also on Tuesday 5th April, the occupier of a property in Rotherwas called police to report that she had disturbed persons in her garden when she arrived home at around 9.30pm. One male was seen to jump into an empty pond ( what a shame it was empty!) carrying something, later it was discovered that a sack truck had been left there. A car was also seen to leave the area which the police later caught up with and all occupants were spoken to, enquiries are continuing with regard to that. Watch out for this bogus charity collector! This is a recent press release which was mentioned in an earlier briefing. West Mercia Police is issuing a warning to shops and pubs across Herefordshire about an apparently bogus charity collector, who claims to be collecting for a leukaemia charity. The man is believed to have visited many shops in Leominster over the past few weeks and intelligence suggests he may also be active in Hereford. He is also suspected of similar incidents in Shropshire, Gwent and Cheshire. He claims that his child died from leukaemia recently and that he is either collecting for a charity such as Leukaemia Research or looking to be sponsored for a run on behalf of the charity. He often claims that by giving money, the premises will get a mention or advert in the local newspaper, sometimes saying it’s because he works for the local paper and as such the adverts will be free. The same man is also believed to be targeting local pubs with a different tactic. He is though to loosen the connections of water pipes, causing a leak, and then and claims that he has slipped in the water and broken a SatNav or a new watch, or ripped his clothes, in the hope that the management will hand over some cash as compensation. PC Angie Hull, from Leominster Local Policing Team Station, said: “This man was first reported to us earlier this month and my investigations have uncovered at least 24 reports about his activities in and around Leominster. But he has potentially targeted many more businesses who have not realised they may have been conned, especially as some of the amounts he ‘collects’ are pretty small. I am aware that he has been seen operating in Hereford, but we have yet to hear of any confirmed reports. West Mercia Police colleagues in Shropshire are investigating eight further incidents in Shropshire and his offences being investigated as far apart as Gwent and Cheshire. He is described as smartly dressed and extremely plausible, often changing his story depending on which business he is talking to. He is described as white, in his 20s or 30s and of average build, with brown or light brown hair. Our advice to anyone, whether in a shop, pub or other business is never to hand over any money unless you can verify that the person is legitimately collecting for a specific charity. If you have any concerns about a person’s validity, offer instead to donate directly to whichever charity they are collecting for, getting the contact details yourself either from the internet or the phone book.” PC Hull also urged anyone who might be visited by the suspected bogus collector not to give him any money and to contact police immediately on 0300 333 3000. Many thanks for reading this Fiona p.p. Golden Valley & Hereford Rural South Local Policing Team
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