AT THE HEART OF THE ROAD TRANSPORT INDUSTRY.

Call our Sales Team on 0208 912 2120

Calls for new steel in Coppergold

10th June 2004, Page 7
10th June 2004
Page 7
Page 7, 10th June 2004 — Calls for new steel in Coppergold
Close
Noticed an error?
If you've noticed an error in this article please click here to report it so we can fix it.

Which of the following most accurately describes the problem?

WEST MIDLANDS Police are believed to be on the verge of resurrecting a specialised unit to tackle truck theft following a spate of bad publicity about its response to the issue.

The team is likely to be much more focused on the Black Country than Operation Coppergold, the previous West Midlands-wide initiative to crack down on truck crime which was wound up last year.

Since then there have been repeated calls to resurrect Coppergold which led to a string of successful prosecutions. During the first three months of this year 11% of the 712 trucks

stolen nationally were recorded by West Midlands police, putting the county at the top of the truck crime league (CM 13 May).

Coppergold was absorbed into West Midlands Police's 'Safer Motors' initiative, but critics say this lacks the necessary focus on haulage because it covers all types of vehicles. Superintendent Peter Sear, of Safer Motors, says West Midlands Police continue to take truck crime very seriously and targeting key offenders remains a priority: "We are extremely keen to maintain strong relationships with the industry as we work towards the

reduction of these crimes."

Most truck crime in the region is concentrated in the Black Country and this is where many of the complaints about the police's response to the issue have come from.

David Kay, of K Transport Services in Wolverhampton, says he logged 23 calls to police about the theft of a six-wheel rigid but got no practical help at all (CM 6 May).

Chris Kelly, chairman of West Bromwich-based Scania dealership Keltruck, says any decision by police to resurrect a truck crime unit will be "due to the enormous negative publicity that they have been subjected to".


comments powered by Disqus