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What a police force (or is that a police farce?)
Vic Barlow4/10/2006
IT'S NOT often I'm lost for words but today I am.
You may recall the following incidents:
When two young girls were held up at gunpoint at an off-licence no more than one mile from Macclesfield Police Station they locked themselves in a storeroom and called 999.
They were eventually rescued by friends and family and on their way home by the time officers arrived. Cheshire Police made a public apology.
When a Knutsford jeweller saw two suspicious men watching his premises he called Cheshire Police and told them his store was likely to be raided. He was assured officers would be maintaining surveillance. Several hours later an armed gang burst through the door and ransacked the shop without any police presence whatsoever. The chief constable offered an apology.
More recently an armed gang raided a jewellery store, no more than 200 yards from Macclesfield police station, in full view of town centre CCTV cameras and still escaped without apprehension.
Since then jewellers throughout the borough have suffered a series of increasingly violent attacks (some retailers have been raided three times). So when Cheshire Police received a tip-off that a store in the area was to be hit last Saturday one might have expected a stake out.
What followed is beyond belief. Rather than have officers observing town centre jewellery stores they parked a number of UNOCCUPIED police vehicles in Macclesfield, Wilmslow and Alderley.
It doesn't take a criminologist to explain that armed raiders are no more stupid than members of the public and an unattended police vehicle wasn't likely to fool anyone.
At 4pm a gun toting gang entered the premises of Henry D Johnstone in Alderley, terrifying staff and removing valuable stock. Once again they made a clean getaway.
Despite the tip-off there appeared to be no surveillance, no protection and no plan. Given the frequency with which these violent raids take place one can but wonder what it takes to merit such action.
If an armed robbery endangering the public does not then perhaps someone within Cheshire Police could explain what does.
What's the point maintaining armed response units that don't actually respond or surveillance teams that don't act on a tip-off?
Henry Johnstone, the proprietor, is extremely angry and demands to know why there was no protection on hand from Cheshire Police.
No doubt, Mr Johnstone will receive the customary apology.
- THE views expressed on this page are those of Vic Barlow and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Express.
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5/10/2006 at 12:39
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10/10/2006 at 09:51