News 27 November to 3 December
 Our officers and community safety partners at Southend Victoria.
Southend Community Policing Team officers and Community Safety Partnership colleagues marked White Ribbon Day with an engagement event at Southend Victoria train station.
They worked alongside Transport Safety Officers, charity partners including The Change Project and Southend street pastors to talk to commuters and hand out information about staying safe.
White Ribbon Day is an international campaign calling for the elimination of violence against women and girls.
 Gary Hindle
Westcliff: Man jailed for murder of Gary Hindle
Thanks to work by our specialist detectives, a man has been told he must spend at least 26 years in prison for the murder of Gary Hindle in Westcliff.
Gary was just 53 when he was attacked by Barry Mooney in Hamlet Court Road at around 6pm on Thursday 18 July.
CCTV showed that in the moments leading up to the attack, Mooney and Gary had had a short conversation, possibly an argument.
Mooney got up from the bench where they were both sitting, walked over to a nearby tree and got out a large knife before attacking Gary with it.
Gary sustained injuries to his face and back and, sadly, died at the scene.
Shortly after, Mooney also attacked another man who happened to be walking through Hamlet Court Road at the time.
He was taken to hospital and his injuries are life-changing injuries to his face.
Mooney stayed at the scene, sitting on a bench still holding the knife until officers pulled up in a police car.
Despite being told to drop the knife he refused, and officers had to taser him and were then able to arrest him.
While in custody, Mooney made threats towards officers and admitted he had carried out the attack.
Fifty-five year-old Mooney, of Crowstone Road, Westcliff, was charged.
At Basildon Crown Court on Thursday 28 November he admitted murder and GBH with intent and was jailed for life and told he would not be eligible for parole for at least 26 years.
Man charged after attempted robbery of 12-year-old boy
A man has been charged with attempted robbery after a 12-year-old boy was approached in Southend.
It was reported the teenaged boy was approached by a man in Swanage Road at around 4.20pm on 25 November who grabbed him and demanded his phone.
The boy refused and was assaulted.
Officer arrested a 27-year-old man form Dagenham on suspicion of attempted robbery on Friday 29 November.
Now, 27-year-old Shaun Lio, of New Road in Dagenham, has been charged with attempted robbery and remanded in custody. He appeared at Southend-on-Sea Magistrates’ Court on Monday 2 December.
That’s the message from our Chief Constable as figures show there have been 9,300 fewer offences reported in Essex in the last year.
Crime has been falling consistently since before the pandemic, with 22,000 fewer offences reported than this time five years ago.
And at the same time as bringing crime down, in the last 12 months the force has attended 77,000 emergencies, made more than 30,000 arrests, and secured more than 13,000 charges
Work by officers leads to 40% fall in violence
The work of officers tackling incidents of violence in Southend has led to a significant decrease in serious incidents across the city.
Since our sustained and significant policing operation was launched in the very early part of October we’ve seen a 40% decrease in incidents of serious violence in Southend.
And in that time, of a group of about ten people who we had identified as being involved in a number of incidents, nine have been charged with offences which have seen them remanded into custody.
For those who are not in custody at this stage, they are the subject of targeted and regular monitoring by officers. This is to ensure their opportunity to commit crime is severely curtailed.
Our work to tackle this group – and others who we believe are connected – will continue throughout December and into 2025.
The electronic, online world changes so quickly...so don’t get left behind.
‘Sort Your Settings’ for your children to ensure games console and smart phones are set up safely and securely.
The successful Sort Your Settings campaign is in its third year and continues to raise awareness around online safety. The campaign, launched in 2022, provides parents with safeguarding tips, tricks and advice on how to make online devices safer for children, a welcomed initiative kicking off on Black Friday and continuing throughout the Christmas shopping period.
 Let's talk
Upcoming community police events
Thursday 5 December 4pm to 5pm
Havens Age concern, Hamlet Court Road, Westcliff
Friday 6 December 6:30pm to 7:30pm
The Vineyard, 6 Warrior Square, Southend
Monday 9 December 11am to 12pm
Leigh Community Centre, Elm Road, Leigh
Wednesday 11 December 10am to 11am
The Plaza Centre, Southchurch Road, Southend
 Crime prevention advice
With it getting darker earlier, whether on two legs or two wheels always make yourself visible to others this winter.
Here are some tips to help you stay safe while out cycling.
- In addition to good road positioning, high visibility clothing will help drivers spot you, especially in low light conditions.
- You must always use lights on your bike when cycling in the dark.
- In the event of a collision, our crash data shows that wearing a cycle helmet will halve your risk of receiving a serious head injury.
Be fraud smart
When shopping online this Black Friday stay safe.
With lots of offers, deals and bargains being offered to us when online, it can sometimes be difficult to spot the difference between the fraudsters' fake sites from the real ones.
Our tops time to help are:
- If you see an ad for something but are unsure if the site is real don’t click on the link. Instead search for the organisation and take some time to read the entries on the results page to check it is genuine – scroll a little
- Use a credit card when making a purchase or a secure payment method as they are often additional protections.
If you think you have been a victim of fraud, tell your bank and report it as a crime.
 How much alcohol can I drink and not be over the limit
The only safe limit of alcohol to have in your blood and drive is zero!
It is not advisable to even have one drink and drive as alcohol impairs your judgement and lessens your reflexes. The official amount of alcohol is 35 microgrammes per 100ml of breath reading, this cannot be translated into an exact amount of units as it depends on many factors, height and weight, the time when last drink was consumed etc, so the best advice is not to drink at all or to order a taxi.
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