By Sergeant Andy Boyd
Hello Newton Aycliffe.
July has presented the Beat Team at Newton Aycliffe with a variety of issues and crime, ranging from anti-social behaviour in the form of off-road bikes and adults purchasing alcohol for minors, to a handful of burglaries and theft from motor vehicles. There has been a vehicle security campaign across County Durham with an emphasis on reminding car owners to make sure their vehicles are secure overnight. I would urge you to get into the routine of not only checking that your house doors are locked overnight, but taking a few seconds to make sure that your cars are secure also. If you didn’t see the video created for this campaign, please do so following this link (https://www.facebook.com/durhamconstabulary/videos/1796666077078668/).
We have a number of suspects for these burglaries, one of which was arrested Wednesday morning (08/08/2018) at his home address and remains in police custody. Another was arrested for Burglary and Theft from a motor vehicle on the Industrial Estate and was charged with both offences.
In relation to off road bikes, we continue to gather evidence to identify the persons responsible, and have issued a Traffic Warning Notice to an individual in Silverdale Place, this means that if caught again that the vehicle will be seized. We have also issued a £90 Fixed Penalty Ticket to an adult buying alcohol for a minor and continue to work with licensed premises to identify other suspect for this offence.
We have been attending numerous events around the town including the Emergency Services Event in the Town Centre, St Jospehs Summer Fair, Sugarhill Primary School and the PCP Family Fun Day. All events were well attended and the team had a great time interacting with the community (some photos of these events can be found on our Facebook page).
Three of our PCSO’s also received WOW awards this month in recognition of fantastic customer service. These awards are particularly special to us as they are nominated by the community, so we are very proud of Christine Obrien, Jennifer Atkinson and Matt Walls who are a great asset to the team.
A major amount of work was also carried out by Christine Obrien in relation to the Anti-Social Behaviour caused by a male resident in Silverdale Place over a period of months, this caused a great deal of stress to other residents living in the local area. On the eve of a court appearance in order to obtain a Premises Closure Order to evict the tenant and close down the property, this particular tenant decided that it was in his own interests to move of his own accord.
The team are attending the Horndale Residents Association Family Fun Day on Thursday 16th August at Greenfields Arts and Community College. It promises to be a fantastic event, PC Welch has promised to get into the stocks so everyone can throw wet sponges at him too!!
Newton Aycliffe is starting to grow on me, there are some fantastic events and amazing people working in the community, and my hope is that by working with partners and the community that we can make it a more enjoyable and safer place to live. Please follow us on Facebook to see what we’re up to, and for information on current issues and PACT meeting times/dates.
