POLICE are today launching another blitz on burglars across Doncaster.
Officers across the borough are undertaking a day of action to combat burglary, which is a key priority for South Yorkshire Police because of a six per cent increase in the crime over the past year.
House burglary makes up nine per cent of the county’s overall crime and, in the last year, from February 2012 to this January, 26 per cent of all house burglaries were as a result of homes not being ‘secure’ due to having an open door or window.
Compared to last year South Yorkshire has had 488 more offences of house burglary, which equates to the six per cent increase.
Doncaster suffered the second biggest increase in burglaries during 2012.
They went up by 10 per cent, from 1,975 to 2,173, compared to Rotherham which went down by three per cent.
When the statistics are broken down into burglaries at insecure properties, Doncaster is the worst in the county, with 31 per cent of those 2,173 burglaries committed at homes where doors or windows have been left unlocked.
Officers and Police Community Support Officers will be distributing leaflets at crime prevention stalls to advise members of the public on how to secure their homes and be cautious of doorstep callers.
PCSOs will also visit addresses which are vulnerable to burglary and offer to postcode-mark their property with UV pens for indoor electrical items and permanent markers for tools and garden equipment.
They will also provide crime prevention advice and leaflets, in particular how to use the Immobilise database to register belongings.
The force’s lead officer for burglary, Detective Chief Inspector Dave Stopford, who is leading the day of action, said: “As a force we will continue to make an impact on burglary, as a commitment to our communities to tackle this crime and target criminals in South Yorkshire who make people’s lives a misery.
“Not only will we bring these offenders before the courts but we will also seek to seize their assets, which are often illegally gained.”
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