UK Policing News

Can't get any more info than this yet as I am not a paying subscriber to Police Review and can only quote the headline; £500,000? Link

The acting commissioner of the Met Police today denied that corruption is endemic in the force. Tim Godwin, who has taken over temporarily from Sir Paul Stephenson after he resigned over his links to the scandal, admitted a small number of police officers were "corrupted" - but said: "The vast majority of staff are honest, hard-working people." Amid a growing row over the role of Boris Johnson's deputy mayor Kit Malthouse in the phone hacking crisis, Mr Godwin told the Metropolitan Police Authority that the force must learn from its mistakes. He said: "Let me reassure you, corruption is in no way endemic in the police. We continue to do all we can to root it out. We ne…

http://menmedia.co.uk/manchestereveningnews/news/s/1453914_video-weeding-out-evil---the-gardener-who-patrols-streets-of-salford-as-superhero-knight-warrior Could he not be sworn in as a special constable?

LETHAL dance drug mephedrone is now as popular as cocaine among young people, figures revealed last night. More than one in 25 teenagers and young adults – nearly 300,000 people – admitted using it last year, making it the second most popular drug among those aged between 16 and 24. The British Crime Survey, which covers England and Wales, also showed a rise in cannabis use and a staggering 25 per cent increase in ketamine use. Mephedrone, also known as M-Cat or meow-meow, is sold online as plant food or bath salts, with a gram costing between £20 and £25. The white powder barely registered in drugs surveys just three years ago, but since then its use has so…

From the BBC The BBC's Mark Easton presents figures showing an increase in this year's burglary rate, and then compares them with earlier year's figures, which appear to be much the same. As so often the real story is more interesting (but not more sensational) than the headlines. The "14% rise in burglary" figure comes with a clear warning from the Office for National Statistics (ONS). The increase, they say, "should be viewed in the context that the estimate from the 2009/10 BCS was one of the lowest since the survey began and the current estimate is more in line with those for the previous five years. Thus it would be premature to view this as evidence of a newly …

Big City accountancy firms could be drafted in to help police seize the assets of organised criminals who have stashed their wealth abroad, ministers revealed today. Home Office minister James Brokenshire said that "forensic accountants" and other private investigators could be hired as part of a new strategy to bring more fraudsters, people traffickers and drug dealers to justice. Other key parts of the blueprint announced today include legal reforms to make it easier to seize ill-gotten gains in this country and a purge on "bent accountants and lawyers" who help criminals set up "front" businesses to conceal their illegal activity. Ministers say they plan to strik…

A police leader has called for officers to sport their tattoos at work – claiming it could be an 'icebreaker' when dealing with the public. All 43 police forces in England and Wales ban their officers from having rude, lewd, discriminatory, violent or intimidating tattoos that could cause offence to colleagues or the public. Even innocuous tattoos are expected to be covered from public view and body and facial piercings are banned. But Ian Pointon, chairman of the Police Federation in Kent, has slammed the official rules, saying the Kent force needs to 'get over' its problem with tattoos and allow officers to show off their body art. 'It comes down to personal taste an…

Just a few stories regarding the items / products seized by police : BBC Link Daily Fail link Glad to see there reporting that some of the proceeds are going back into victims.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-manchester-14305192 http://menmedia.co.uk/manchestereveningnews/news/s/1453763_pictured-72-year-old-shopkeeper-arrested-over-stabbing-to-death-of-armed-raider-at-old-trafford-florist http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2009425/Ken-Clarke-says-hit-burglar-poker-unveils-controversial-prison-reform-bill.html Recently the govt seemed to be saying that anyone who is burgled and defends themselves wont be prosecuted. I know that being arrested does not immediately mean that a prosecution will happen and, I am aware that talking about a change in the law means that it is not yet on the statute books. Usually though guidance is issued t…

Detectives are questioning five men in connection with the murder of a police officer in County Tyrone in April Five men have been arrested in Northern Ireland after a police investigation involving 200 officers into the murder of a Catholic police officer in April. The dissident republican unit believed to be behind the murder includes former Provisional IRA members who are aligned with, but operate independently from, the Real IRA. The ages of the detained men range from 22 to 46, and they were arrested under the Terrorism Act. Before this latest operation, 33 searches had been conducted in Northern Ireland, the Republic of Ireland and Scotland in connection with the…

'Big Brother' police warn bird lover: You could be sued for filming parakeet cull (... and whatever you do, don't give the photos to a newspaper) By Andy Whelan Last updated at 1:23 PM on 24th July 2011 A bird lover who is battling to save rare parrots says the police tried to ban photographs he took of Government officials destroying their nests. Simon Richardson, who is campaigning against a cull of monk parakeets, said he was shocked when police told him he could be sued for thousands of pounds for invading the officials’ privacy. Mr Richardson stood in his street and took pictures of Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs staff as they removed nests…

http://www.bbc.co.uk...entral-14315917 Nice job done when he was caught by police after the mans fake set up.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-manchester-14305192 (if someone could paste the actual story I'd aporeacaite that). It appears that a florist in Greater Manchester was robbed and one of the robbers is dead. Shopkeeper arrested for murder, another male for robbery. A firearm has been found at the scene.

When Daniel Findon unscrewed the dust cap from a friend's bicycle and threw it in a ditch, it was meant to be a childish prank. But the boy's mother contacted police who raced to the area within minutes and frogmarched 15-year-old Daniel home. His stunned mother, Debbie Chamberlain, was then told he faced a criminal record for theft unless she arranged for the 12-year-old 'victim', who lives near their home in Haverhill, Suffolk, to receive a written apology and a new dust cap. Fearing a refusal would stop her son being able to get a part-time job, she agreed. But yesterday she said she was in 'utter disbelief' about her son's treatment and criticised police for wasting …

"Two police officers have been threatened with having to pay the £3000 legal bill of a driver whose charges were dropped. PC Caroline McGladderry and a colleague nicked the motorist for alleged careless driving six months ago. But in an unprecedented move they have been told they have to personally meet the drivers legal fees after prosecutors dropped the charge. The motorist demanded that Strathclyde Police pay his £3000 bill following the procurator fiscal's decision to dump the case. But the force have now written to the two officers, telling them that they may have to pay up. Police chiefs have refused to comment on why they have taken the controversial dec…