Op Hotspot patrol in Hertford and Bishop’s Stortford to tackle shoplifting and ASB

Extra police foot patrols in Hertford and Bishop’s Stortford are being conducted to tackle crime in the town centres.

Jonathan Ash-Edwards, the Police and Crime Commissioner for Hertfordshire, joined two officers for the afternoon and early evening patrols, which are part of Operation Hotspot.

Earlier this year his office has obtained £1m in Home Office funding to launch the initiative in Hertfordshire.

Using an evidence-based approach additional patrols will take place, alongside the regular police local operations. It will run as part of Hertfordshire Police’s work to monitor areas of high concern and deploy additional resources as required.

On Thursday (August 8^th) Mr Ash-Edwards accompanied PCSOs Clare Andrews and Fallon Collins at Hertford police station before they set off to walk around the town centre, taking in the Castle grounds, Fore Street, East Herts train station and Madford Retail Park.

Later in Bishop’s Stortford the patrol was focused on shops in the town centre which were being targeted by shoplifters. The officers also gathered intelligence and visited nearby residential roads.

Jonathan Ash-Edwards, Police & Crime Commissioner for Hertfordshire, said:

“The officers I was out with today have told me they have already made arrests while out on Operation Hotspot patrols. The public are clear that they want to see more officers out and about in their communities which is what this programme is about.

“These areas which have been chosen are because there are higher levels of crime in these specific areas than elsewhere in the county. These patrols are designed to that the officers are in the right areas, at the right times to disrupt criminality and provide public reassurance.

“Already more than 1,100 hours of additional police patrols have been carried out as part of the initiative and there are many more to come.”

Those areas included in Operation Hotspot are: Hertford, Hitchin, Bishop’s Stortford, St Albans, Rickmansworth, South Oxhey, Borehamwood, Watford, Stevenage, Hemel Hempstead, Welwyn Garden City and Waltham Cross.