News 17 January to 23 January
 Update from you community policing Inspector
Community Policing Team - Inspectors Blog
This week I met with partners and colleagues from Colchester and other districts in the north of Essex, at the crime prevention and innovation round table, where we discuss current themes and issues locally around crime prevention. One of the main areas of focus for community policing is crime prevention and we work closely with partners to identify and reduce the opportunity for crime and we also work with communities to build resilience and prevent our community from becoming a victim of crime.
We recently worked with the council on the launch of the bikewise campaign Bikewise | Safer Colchester Partnership. As a bike user myself, I know that purchasing a bike is expensive and so it is frustrating when it then gets stolen. Often we find that despite spending lots of money on a bike, people then spend very little on a quality lock to secure it and then their bike is more susceptible to being stolen. If you ride a bike or know someone that does, please share the above link with them so they can look up advice on keeping it safe and secure. We will also be holding a bike marking event on Sunday 28 January from 15:00- 18:00 at Leisure world on Cowdray avenue.
The continued cold weather has reduced the number of people in the city centre, but the community policing team have continued to be out, completing hi-visibility patrols in the city centre and wider Colchester district. We have completed hundreds of hours of hi-visibility policing this week as well as stop and searched 15 persons. During the stop searches, 4 people were dealt with for drug related offences, 1 arrested for theft and 2 persons arrested for going equipped. We have also arrested people for breach of bail, public order offences and 3 individuals for shoplifting in the last week.
The team executed a warrant this week at a Colchester address, following joint work with the border force on the importation of controlled substances. A man was arrested and is currently on bail for offences relating to the importation and production of controlled substances. We have investigated 58 offences relating to the importation of illegal substances or weapons over the last 12 months and have successfully taken positive action on 19 investigations to date. For more information regarding importation offences follow this link Guns, knives, swords and other offensive weapons: UK border control - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
Inspector Jenna Mirrington-French
Woman arrested following serious assault
A woman has been arrested following a serious assault in Colchester on Sunday, 21 January. Officers were called to an address on Maidenburgh Street shortly before 3:30am, 21 January following reports of a man being assaulted.
The victim, a man in his 30s sustained multiple stab wounds. He was taken to hospital where he remains in a stable condition.
Our officers arrested a 43-year-old woman from Colchester on suspicion of grievous bodily harm with intent. She has since been released on bail until 8 March, whilst enquiries continue.
Become a cadet leader
We want to offer young people in the opportunity to be a part of our volunteer police cadet programme.
But we need your help.
We’re looking for local people, over the age of 18, to get involved in our police cadet programme as a volunteer cadet leader.
Police Cadets isn't about recruiting police officers of the future. It's about building positive relationships between young people, their communities, and police.
Our volunteer police cadet leaders help to guide and inspire local teens, encouraging them to become good citizens.
Being a cadet leader is hugely rewarding. Not only will you gain skills, experience, and qualifications, but your mentorship can support young local people grow into confident, well-rounded members of our community.
You don’t need to have a policing background to be a cadet leader. In fact, we encourage those outside the police community to apply.
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 Let's talk
Upcoming community police events
Bike marking event- Sunday 28 Jan 3pm- 6pm LEISURE WORLD , COWDRAY AVENUE
Let’s talk -Tuesday 30 Jan 10:00am to 11:00am LAKELANDS CENTRE, 2 WESTERN APPROACH, STANWAY
Let’s Talk - Colchester Rural South Wednesday 31 Jan 10:00am to 11:00am
MARKS AND SPENCER, STANE RETAIL PARK
Let’s Talk -Thursday 1 Feb 2024 10:30am to 11:30am ONE COLCHESTER HUB 4-6 LONG WYRE STREET
Let’s talk - Thursday 1 Feb, 2024 12:30pm to 1:30pm TIPTREE TEA ROOM, MUSEUM AND JAM SHOP, FACTORY HILL, TIPTREE
 Protect your bike from theft
If you’ve ever had your bicycle stolen, you’ll know how upsetting it can be. Our practical tips will help keep your bike safe and out of the hands of thieves – and also advise on how to get it back if it is stolen.
The most important thing to remember is, double lock your bike and register the frame number.
ways to protect your bike
Follow these tips to ensure your bike remains safe, secure and not a statistic.
Double lock it
Using two locks slows thieves down and makes your bike less of a target. Use two quality locks, at least one of which is a D-lock. Thieves are less likely to carry multiple tools, so use two different types of lock if possible. Lock the frame and both wheels to a secure cycle stand. Secure your bike as close to the stand as possible to give any thieves little or no room to manoeuvre.
Park securely
Lock your bike at recognised secure cycle parking. It should be well lit and covered by CCTV.
Be fraud smart
How to check an officers identity
There have been occasions when fraudsters have posed as police officers, both in person and on the phone, to trick people into giving them personal information and defraud them of money.
If you're unsure about whether the person you're dealing with is a genuine police officer – stop – and call us on 101 to check their identity.
Please note, if you've been on the phone to someone – who called you – but you have doubts about them, we recommend that you hang up and wait five minutes before you call us. There have been cases of fraudsters keeping the line open after a victim has hung up. Leaving several minutes between calls will make sure that the call has closed.
How our officers will contact you
There have been occasions when fraudsters have posed as police officers, both in person and on the phone, to trick people into giving them personal information and defraud them of money.
If you're unsure about whether the person you're dealing with is a genuine police officer – stop – and call us on 101 to check their identity.
Please note, if you've been on the phone to someone – who called you – but you have doubts about them, we recommend that you hang up and wait five minutes before you call us. There have been cases of fraudsters keeping the line open after a victim has hung up. Leaving several minutes between calls will make sure that the call has closed.
How our officers will contact you
How our officers make contact will depend on how you've asked us to contact you and the circumstances around why they're contacting you.
For investigative purposes we may get in touch:
in person
by phone
by email
Whichever way an officer contacts you they will identify themselves clearly as an officer and explain why they're contacting you.
Contact in person
If one of our officers contacts you in person, they'll show you their police warrant card. This is proof of their identity and authority.
Contact by phone
If one of our officers needs to speak to you on the phone, they'll identify themselves clearly. They will never:
- ask you for your bank details or PIN
- ask you to transfer funds to another account
- ask you to hand over cash or bank cards to a courier
- ask you to pay a fine or a fee to them or a third party over the phone or online
- ask you for access to your computer, passwords or log on details over the phone or online
- ask you to register personal details in an attachment or website online
- ask you to 'assist' in an investigation by doing any of the above
- state that you are committing a crime by not complying
- communicate in an abusive, threatening or coercive manner
Contact by email
If one of our officers contacts you by email, they will never:
- ask for remote access to your computer
- ask you to click on a hyperlink to participate in an investigation
- send you unsolicited emails with attached files, especially zip or macro-enabled Microsoft Office files
- ask you for any login credentials or passwords
 My neighbours car alarm is always going off , what can i do?
If the car alarm is a false activation and not someone attempting to steal or break into the vehicle it would be advisable in the first instance to speak to your neighbour about the problem as they may not be aware what is happening. If the problem persists you should contact the Environmental Health department at your local council who have powers to deal with nuisance car alarms.
If you do see someone trying to break into a vehicle contact the police on 999 immediately.
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