27 March 2019

St Marys Ward Update

Hello everyone, Another update from us about what has been happening across the ward over the past couple of weeks and also a little bit about what the team have been up to and upcoming events. I'll start with the bad news first... Burglaries: We have had one residential burglary and 3 non residential burglaries. On 14/03/2019 at approximately 7:30pm a house on Knoll Rd, Bexley was burgled. Fortunately the elderly couple that live there were not home at the time but sadly a large amount of jewellery, much of it of great sentimental value, was stolen. Two sets of neighbours witnessed the burglary and called police but unfortunately the suspects were able to evade capture. The suspects were seen to pull up outside the address in a white Honda Civic with the registration G7HUK & three males were seen to get out and force the wooden side gate open, gaining access to the rear garden where they then smashed the glass in the rear door. Sometime between 4pm on 15/03/2019 & 7am on 18/03/2019 a temporary compound was broken in to on Ellenborough Rd. The suspects stole tools. Sometime between 12pm on 23/03/2019 & 12pm on 24/03/2019 a house which is being refurbished on Camden Rd was broken in. The suspects had managed to gain access to the rear of the house and smash the glass in the bi-folding doors. It is believed they were after tools left on sight but nothing was taken. Between 6 & 7pm on 24/03/2019 a male was seen to be removing a lawn mower, strimmer and other gardening equipment from a garage on St James Way. When confronted by a passer-by he stated that he was helping the occupants of the house move which was obviously confirmed to be false later that day. There were also other witnesses to this so further enquiries including CCTV enquiries will be made by the team in the coming days. Vehicle crime: On 13/03/2019 between 1130am & 1230pm a van was broken in to while parked in the car park behind The Greek Taverna, Bexley Village. Various tools were stolen from the back of the van. On 18/03/2019 a stolen Nissan Quashqai on false plates was located by police on Ellenborough Rd and recovered to the car pound. On 24/03/2019 between 7am & 7:55am rear lights were stolen from a Land Rover Defender while it was parked in Leafield Lane, North Cray. Other crimes of note: The team have been made aware of a spate of card frauds in Bexley Village where devices are being placed in cash machines to record pin numbers and trap customers cards. This mostly occurs from Thursday - Monday. Last week we made extensive CCTV enquiries in the village & have managed to capture two males on CCTV who are responsible for this. Both males are of Asian appearance. Enquiries and patrols are ongoing to try & apprehend the suspects for this. In the meantime please be aware of your surroundings when at cash machines & ensure you cover the keypad when typing in your pin number. If you notice anyone acting suspiciously around cash machines then call the police immediately. We have also been conducting CCTV enquiries at the Select store on Bourne Rd, Bexley Village as they are currently suffering from a high volume of thefts from the shop. Some people have contacted us about the increase in homeless people around the village in recent weeks/months. We have spoken to these individuals and have made referrals to the council. We are currently working with the council & Thames Reach to try and get some support for these individuals and get them off the street. We have also been very busy making home visits to those in the catchment area for the smart water initiative. Some of you are still waiting for call backs. We are aware of this and are trying to get to you as quick as possible. We will be continuing with this in the coming weeks. Upcoming events: A reminder to you all that we are holding a crime prevention event where we will be joined by representatives from smart water, the AA and the Neighbourhood Watch Scheme to provide advice on how you can prevent becoming a burglary victim or being a victim of car crime. It will also give you a chance to meet us, your local safer neighbourhood officers. These events will be held at The Holiday Inn, Black Prince Interchange tomorrow (26/05/2019) from 12:30pm - 6:30pm and also on Saturday 30/03/2019 from 10:30am - 4:30pm. On Wednesday the team will be working on a joint operation together with Kent Police & traffic police to try and stop vehicles coming in and out of the borough which are potentially involved in burglary. Kind Regards PC Sophie Scott 4491SE DWO - St Mary's & St James' Safer Neighbourhood Team Marlowe House Sidcup 0208 721 2816