Tackling Crime. The messages are confusing!

Kia Ora,

Tackling Crime can be confusing when the messages given out are.

Yesterday was a classic case.

Was reading 'The Press' & there is an article claiming burglaries in a part of Christchurch are falling. More like a fall in reported burglaries as the police don't show up or if you have a fax they send you a form to fill in.

So people just don't report a burglary. It is not uncommon for the police to be calling for people to identify items they believe taken in burglaries. Residents of one area were quoted recently as saying "well it wasn't major & we didn't think anyone would show up" or words to that effect.

The report goes onto say reporting suspicious activity is key to cutting burglaries. I agree, but when you do it you get the third degree & no one shows up.

For instance the night I was attacked recently, a few minutes earlier I was able to get footage of two persons running from the vicinity of a business premises after hearing some noises. They then jumped into a hidden vehicle. Police comms were called with registration number of suspicious vehicle as did not see them on site.

But experience told me that the likelyhood of them having been on site committing crime, since there were car wrecks there & their vehicle was a boy racer type, was pretty good.

But the person I got was deliberately slowing things down & treating me like I was the criminal. How can the police on the street do their job effectively if they are not getting the support?

Reporting suspicious activity is the key element of the new service launched under Foxhound Security Ltd. This was because such a large amount of crime is not reported. In fact one media outlet once placed it at 95% of crime & 96% of violent crime is not reported in New Zealand.

By impacting on suspicious activity, you impact on crime & this has been proven time & again by those of us who actually provide security. Unfortunately within the NZ Security Industry that is few & far between especially when you are told not to provide it by the majority of the industry.
Designing Safer Communities: A Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design Handbook
To add to the confusion yesterday on talkbackzb I heard part of a conversation with what appeared to be someone promoting neighbourhood support. Just from what I heard the message for the same area that the article focussed on was totally opposite of what was in the article.

Then today the message that an area nearby is getting hit hard with thefts from vehicles. This is a common pattern, when the police are targeting burglaries & making an impact, the criminal elements move onto vehicles.

That is the idea of the new service as it targets anything suspicious. Just another aid to the police.

Only issue is altogether NZ Police, the NZ Security Industry & groups like neighbourhood support all need to be on the same message.

http://www.foxhoundsecurity.co.nz