Four charged following day of action in Bristol city centre

Four people have been charged following a joint operation in Bristol city centre on Wednesday 8 March.

Wednesday saw a Safer Business Action (SaBA) day involving Avon and Somerset Police, National Business Crime Centre (NBCC), Bristol Business Crime Reduction Partnership (BCRP), Broadmead Business Improvement District (BID), private security companies, and businesses across the Broadmead area.

The joint operation saw the various organisations work with local businesses to prevent crime, such as antisocial behaviour, burglary and criminal damage.

Officers targeted offenders and those responsible for antisocial behaviour in  Bristol, as well as engaging with the public, conducting high visibility patrols and speaking with businesses owners.

The day of action saw:

• Three people arrested for breaching their Community Protection Notice. All three have been charged and remanded into custody.
• One person arrested and charged for burglary. They have also been remanded into custody.
• Three people were given Community Protection Warnings, which are issued to stop people from committing antisocial behaviour in an area.
• A community resolution was agreed after one person was caught for shop theft.
• One person was referred to the street intervention service.
• One person was given words of advice relating to begging.

Acting Insp Richard Jones said: “It was a fantastic day of action and the results reflected that. A particular highlight is a burglary that was reported at a local supermarket, leading to a proactive arrest within two hours.

“By pooling all of our expertise together, we were able to increase our understanding of issues facing businesses, while targeting offenders and those responsible for antisocial behaviour.

“While it may seem obvious, the police can only respond to crimes and incidents that are reported to us; if we don’t know about something, we cannot act.

“We hope proactive events such as this will build public confidence among the business community and increase reporting of issues to allow us to take the necessary action against perpetrators.”

NBCC Supt Patrick Holloway said: “Safer Business Action Days, through partnership working, are an effective way of utilising resources in designated location to reduce crime and tackle offenders.

“The arrests of offenders, warnings issued, and community engagement during the Safer Business Action Day in Bristol evidence the value of this approach and the collaborative relationships in place between Avon and Somerset Police, the business community, and Business Improvement Districts across the city.

“Ongoing reporting of crime and incidents affecting businesses will only increase the opportunities for joint working against prolific offenders and those who commit anti-social behaviour”.

BCRP Manager Fran Inman said: “We thoroughly enjoyed facilitating the first SaBA day in Bristol’s Broadmead area to help increase awareness of the importance of a consistent and visible approach towards crime prevention.

“Our main objective for the day was to engage with retail staff to understand their safety concerns in and around the shopping centres and transport hubs.

“By working with key partners including several police officers and security teams, we came together to demonstrate a united front in tackling crime and anti-social behaviour in the city.”

Vivienne Kennedy, Head of Broadmead BID, added: “The SaBA Day was a great opportunity to show retailers how seriously Broadmead BID takes their concerns.

“It enables us to develop our relationships with their security team and, as always, emphasise the importance of reporting crime and antisocial behaviour.”