Men arrested over lead thefts (From The Wiltshire Gazette and Herald)

Men arrested over lead thefts

9:39am Wednesday 30th July 2008

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Four men have been arrested following two separate incidents of lead theft in Swindon.

At 8pm on Monday officers attended the industrial site on Blagrove Road following reports of lead being stolen from the roof of a building. Officers attended and found lead and copper piping and some tools. At the scene two local men aged 19-years-old were arrested on suspicion of burglary and were later released on police bail pending further inquiries.

In a separate incident at 11pm on Sunday, police were called to St. Peter's Church on Penhill Drive following a report that lead was being stolen from the roof. Officers arrived at the scene within minutes and two men were detained and the lead recovered. The two men were arrested and taken to Gablecross Police Station and were later released on police bail pending further enquiries.

Operation Herald was launched earlier this month to combat the problem of metal thefts through talking to scrap metal dealers, conducting spot-checks and various other measures.

Detective Inspector Lindsey Winter said: "These two incidents show that we will take positive action wherever we are informed about people in the process of stealing metal. It also demonstrates what can be achieved if people ring the police and report crimes or suspicious activity. People can help us to deal with the problem by thinking about the security of any metal they have and by contact us if they have any information which may be of use to us.

"Through Operation Herald we are committed to reducing metal thefts. As well as taking positive action against offenders we are utilising ANPR technology as metal is transported using the transport network and are gathering intelligence and evidence about those who are involved in the theft of lead. We are also working with other partners locally and regionally to share information and ensure that our efforts to tackle the problem are coherent."

Anyone with information on lead thefts is asked to contact Wiltshire Police on 0845 408 7000.

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