Dudley Police Operation Helps Identify Burglars

Thursday, 4 December 2008

OVER 700 homes in a 'hotspot' area of Dudley are to benefit from the latest in hi-tech DNA property marking in a bid to deter burglars.

As part of a new police-backed scheme known as Operation Identify, local officers in conjunction with Dudley's Community Safety Partnership are helping residents of the Kates Hill area to mark any valuable household items such as laptops, computers, flatscreen TVs, DVD players, iPods and SatNav systems.
 
Bob Dimmock, Performance and Commissioning Manager, Dudley Community Safety Team, said: “A SelectaDNA forensic marking kit is available to all residents of Kates Hill so that they can protect their valuables from the risk of theft. We chose SelectaDNA because it is a very easy product to use. We have literally been able to show the residents how to mark one or two items and then they have been able to do the rest themselves.”

The kits supplied by The Partnership contain a bottle of the SelectaDNA formula, which consists of an ultraviolet tracer and a unique DNA code. The clear liquid can be applied by residents to any household item to identify it as belonging to their property. If it is stolen and later recovered by police, the item can be scanned by police and traced back to the rightful owner via the DNA marking.

Bob Dimmock continued: “We are encouraging residents to use the deterrent stickers supplied with the kit on their front and back windows to indicate to would-be thieves that their property is protected. Residents have been keen to get involved with the scheme and we are very encouraged by the uptake.”

Although overall burglary figures in Dudley have dropped by 24% since 1 April 2005, Councillor Anne Millward, Cabinet Member for Community Safety, said: “We are not complacent and through partnership working we aim to drive crime down even further.

“This is an excellent initiative which I am sure will be extremely effective and help reduce burglaries in the borough, it not only aims to reduce crime but it increases the chance of thieves being caught and prosecuted.”

For further press information and images contact: Angela Singleton, Press Officer for Selectamark. Telephone: 07905 623 819. Email: angelasingleton@tiscali.co.uk