Decoy cars and DNA catch car thieves in borough
Thieves who target cars in Hammersmith and Fulham are being banged up thanks to new covert technology being used by Hammersmith and Fulham police.
The Hammersmith and Fulham Motor Vehicle Crime Squad has started using ‘sting’ cars fitted with covert cameras and tracking devices as bait to catch car criminals.
Decoy mopeds and motorbikes are also being used to trap thieves.
The squad leave laptops, sat navs, iPods and other items on display in decoy cars.
If a thief steals the equipment they are caught on camera, sprayed with unique DNA and covertly tracked.
According to police, the indelible DNA spray is traceable on the criminals even when they evade capture for months.
The spray is also transferred onto the electrical equipment allowing police to trace middle men who ‘fence’ stolen goods.
A Hammersmith thief has already been caught red handed by a decoy car, and given a two month suspended sentence last month.
Jason Hammerton, 19, from Flora Gardens, was arrested on Tuesday, 23 September after he smashed a decoy car’s window and stole the tracking device. He pleaded guilty at West London Magistrates Court on Wednesday 24 September.
Hammersmith and Fulham Council says the latest police statistics show thefts from motor vehicles are down in the borough by 36 per cent on last year.
Hammersmith and Fulham Borough Commander, Chief Superintendent Kevin Hurley, said: “The results are evident, we are arresting and convicting those responsible, and vehicle crime is plummeting across the borough.”
30 October 2008