Local News

Operation Sceptre

As part of our continued work to help keep your communities safe from violent crime, your Wealden Neighbourhood Policing Team have been out and about conducting 'sweeps' of local parks, and public spaces, removing and identifying any hidden or discarded items that could be used in a serious crime.

Regular sweeps are conducted across the district throughout the year, as well as during Operation Sceptre week; a national campaign which takes place twice a year, supporting the work Sussex Police carries out all year round to ensure residents are safe from knife crime in their communities.

The campaign comprises a mix of targeted operational and educational activities to remove unwanted knives off the streets of Sussex, and to reassure and educate young people on the dangers of carrying knives.  

Spot the signs, find support, and how to open conversations with youngsters around knife crime on our Sussex Police website here.

Police have seized 99 cannabis plants at a former pub site in Uckfield

Officers from East Sussex’s Tactical Enforcement Unit (TEU) gained entry to the former Brickmakers Arms in New Road, Ridgewood, Uckfield, on Tuesday 25 April following reports of suspicious activity from members of the public.

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Inside, they found the cannabis plants, which were in the early stage of growth, alongside growing equipment. Superintendent Till Sanderson said: “The site was previously found to be a cannabis factory in May 2021, which was disrupted, but members of the public thought it had started up again.

“It looks like we disrupted the grow at an early stage. The offenders had spent a considerable amount of time, effort and money in constructing the site which they have now thankfully lost. “Cannabis is a harmful, banned substance and its cultivation, sale and distribution brings criminality to an area. It can lead to more serious crimes and goes hand-in-hand with violence, exploitation and addiction, sowing devastation among our communities. “This operation proves that we will continue to be relentless in our pursuit of perpetrators, while working with our partners to address the root causes of this behaviour and safeguard those most at risk of harm.”

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Vehicle pursuit

We made three arrests and recovered two suspected stolen vehicles following a pursuit from Hove to Hailsham (Tuesday, May 2). Highly-trained officers were able to safely bring a vehicle to a stop on the A22, where the arrests were then made. Officers from across the force were also joined by the National Police Air Service helicopter to track one of the vehicles after a driver had earlier decamped from a separate vehicle.

Sussex Police's Head of Roads Policing Superintendent Rachel Glenton said: "The teamwork was seamless, and NPAS provided excellent oversight which helped us reduce the risk to the public, to officers and to those in vehicle itself."

Read more about the incident, and our appeal for witnesses and information, online here.

Click, Call & Connect

For non-emergency incidents or crime prevention advice, click www.sussex.police.uk,  (If you report a crime online, we will assess it in the same way as a 101 call).

Call 101 when you don’t require an urgent response. In an emergency when life is threatened or there is immediate danger always call 999.

Connect with us face-to-face at a police station or contact the local policing team at www.sussex.police.uk/area/your-area.

If you are deaf, hard of hearing or speech impaired, you can contact us using TypeTalk on 18000 or by sending a text to 65999.

After receiving dozens of requests from residents regarding the increase in speeding traffic along Seven Sisters Road, community speed watch will be fitting Speed Watch signs along that road for the safety of residents , wild life, dog walkers and local pussy cats.

Patrols this week

Our patrols of local parks and recreational grounds across the district continue this week. Yesterday afternoon officers from your local Neighbourhood Policing Team took to patrolling Lower Horsebridge Recreation Ground following concerns raised by residents on social media last weekend.

As we head into the weekend, these patrols will continue with Officers keeping an eye out for any suspicious activities, ASB, and crime – we continue to encourage residents to report anything we need to know about at the time.

All non-emergency crime or can be reported by calling 101 or reporting online to our Sussex Police website.

Remember always call 999 in an emergency, a crime in action, or where there is threat to life and/or property.

Do you recognise this quad?

This week Officers from your Hailsham Neighbourhood Policing Team recovered this quad bike, which we believe may have been stolen earlier in the year.

If this quad is yours, and you have details of ownership from your crime report please get in touch online here asking that your contact form is passed to PC Williams at Hailsham NPT.

Following a number of dedicated patrols of our more rural locations across the Wealden district, and as a result of various activities conducted by our RCT we continue to commit to reducing Rural Crime and returning any seized or found property to their rightful owners.

You can follow your Sussex Police Rural Crime Team (RCT) over on social media, on their very own Twitter account which can be found here.

Our latest RCT newsletter can also be found online here.

CVU and DVSA checks and patrols

Our Commercial Vehicle Unit have been out and about with DVSA this week (6th March) conducting vehicle safety checks along stretches of both the A22 and A27 area.

Results include:

7 x vehicles stopped and made safe

5 x fixed penalties issued

2 x offered advice on load security

The highest overweight check conducted was a staggering 44% over the max gross.

The Commercial Vehicle Unit (CVU) provide specialist enforcement, knowledge and investigative capability in respect of commercial vehicle activity, alongside contributing towards improving the safety of all those using the roads in Sussex.

Follow our Roads Policing Unit on Twitter here.

Burglary Advice and Summary

An attempted garage burglary was reported on the 5th March which is believed to have occurred between the 28th Feb-2nd March at a property off Bocking Close, Wadhurst. Owners returned to their garage to find tool marks, and damaged caused whereby unknown suspect/s have attempted to gain entry. (440 of 5/3)

During the daytime of the 4th March a property off Ashdown Road, Forest Row reported a laptop stolen from their property. Unknown suspect/s have entered the victim's address as a trespasser to commit offences. (1381 of 4/3)

Members of the public and business owners are asked to remain alert to any suspicious activity in their area, and to report any concerns to police online or by calling 101. Always dial 999 in an emergency.

There are a number of steps residents can take to property their property, including alarm systems and CCTV cameras, for a range of crime prevention advice, support and tips to keep you and your property safe click here.

If you have been the victim of a burglary, please report online, or by calling 101 – always dial 999 in an emergency/burglary in action.

Help us keep Sussex safe

If you saw or heard anything, or have any information about any incident in this message please contact us online, or call 101, quoting the reference number provided.

Alternatively you can contact the independent charity Crimestoppers, anonymously, on 0800 555 111, or online at www.crimestoppers-uk.org

You can also visit our website at www.sussex.police.uk where you can find our easy to use online forms to report all non-emergencies to us.

On our website you can also find police advice to keep you safe and help you understand the law, and also browse our crime prevention pages for first-hand knowledge, industry best practices and practical crime prevention advice from officers and specialist teams all across the police.

Have you ever had a policing question that doesn't actually require direct police involvement to answer?

Ask the Police is a great online source of information for the most frequently asked policing questions, visit www.askthe.police.uk/ for more information.

Your local teams

What's happening in your area?

Get the latest crime statistics and advice, help us with appeals for information and find out what we’re doing to tackle crime in your area online here.

Follow your local Police team on social media, click below:

Facebook

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Patrols Last Weekend

Another busy weekend for officers on B section across the division last weekend, which saw your teams attending reassurance visits to victims of crime as well as joint partner agency visits with local councils to both residents experiencing and causing anti-social behaviour (ASB).

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Joint partnership discussions also took place, with officers meeting local dog wardens following reports of dangerous dogs in Crowborough.

A number of patrols across areas of North Wealden yielded intelligence of both drug use and dealing, which will be investigated, as well as responded to by planning future street meetings and foot patrols to address local concerns.

In addition to patrols, officers also visited a number of businesses on their areas, as well as obtaining CCTV to help identify any suspects following a recent spate of ASB in Hailsham and Crowborough.

As we head into the weekend, the safety and welfare of our communities remains a top priority, if you see or hear anything your teams need to know about, please call 101 or report online at the time - always call 999 in an emergency/crime in action.

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‍Burglaries This Week

Whilst we have not seen any residential burglaries this week across the district, we have received two reports of attempted thefts from rural farm properties - as such we are issuing the below advice to owners of large outbuildings, stables or farm properties.

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-Mark your property:

You can put any kind of mark on your property to make it unique and so you always know which item is yours.

One option is to mark it with the number of your address followed by your postcode, eg 13 EW1 2EE.

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Most organisations recognise UK post codes, so they can identify your property and return it to you. If you just mark it with a name or symbol it doesn’t tell the police who owns it or where it came from.

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-Make a property log:

Make a property list of your valuable items, detailing the make, model, serial number, value and description.

Take photographs of all your valuables and note any distinguishing marks, including where and how you’ve property marked it, load them onto your computer or keep them on a memory stick.

By having these records, if your property is stolen, you’ll have as much information as possible to give to the police and pass to retailers and other organisations to help find your property.

-Consider fitting machinery and vehicles with a tracking device and/or tagging system:

Items such as quad bikes, sit-on lawn mowers and rotavators are very desirable to thieves.

Consider making them difficult to remove by, shackling them together, or chaining them to a hitch secured to the ground or strong fabric of a building.

Lock or immobilise vehicles and equipment when you’re not using them. Remove keys from cars, tractors and any other vehicles you leave unattended.

If you’re using a tracking company you must still contact police to create a crime report number. (The crime report number usually (but not always) has seven digits and today’s date. The tracking company will need this to call for police assistance).

If you see or hear anything suspicious, or notice persons in areas they shouldn't be, especially around farm or more rural locations, report your instincts at the time to Police online or by calling 101.

The theft of heavy machinery is a considerable problem and is sometimes the result of organised crime.

These thefts are often from farms, woodland and domestic rural locations as well as building sites, and range from sit-on mowers and quad bikes up to very large plant and construction machinery.

If you believe a crime in taking place, or there is immediate threat to life or property always call 999.

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Patrols This Week

A number of patrols have taken place across the district, with officers from your Neighbourhood Policing Team visiting local areas to meet residents and businesses; to identify crime trends, and offer both reassurance and crime prevention tools and advice to help continue keeping your communities safe.

Earlier this week, officers spent time in Pevensey Bay conducting both foot and vehicle patrols in the area, speaking to local residents about any concerns they have; and visiting a number of community buildings to offer updates on recent crimes in the area, as well as offer their support and advice as we head into the weekend.  

Patrols continue into the weekend, and whilst we can not be everywhere, we could be anywhere - if you see or hear anything in your communities you think we need to know about, report it to us at the time, remember you can contact us 24/7, 365 online or by calling 101.

In an emergency always call 999.

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Arrests This Week

Already this week a number of arrests have been made across the district for various offences; including 3 separate arrests for drink driving, in Heathfield, Hailsham and one in Pevensey Bay.

Over the Winter/Christmas period we ran an enhanced campaign (in addition to road safety checks 365 days a year) with both promotional and enforcement activities around drink and drug driving.

During the campaign over 230 individuals were arrested for drink and/or drug driving on the roads of Sussex.

In keeping with previous campaigns, those convicted and disqualified for their offences are being named to raise awareness and provide a deterrent to others from getting behind the wheel while intoxicated.

Details of those drink-drivers who have been convicted during our Winter campaign can be found online here.

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Jobs Post

Looking for a new opportunity? Sussex Police are recruiting!

Check out some of our vacancies online, including, Contact Officers, Awards and Ceremonies Coordinator, Police Community Support Officers (PCSOs), IT – desktop technician, Police Officers – degree holders programme, as well as various roles in Forensics including digital analysts and ID specialists.

We offer a variety of roles and we’d like to hear from you!

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Visit our careers site to find out more and apply today to see where your policing career will take you.

Burglary Advice

There have been no reported residential burglaries this week.

Members of the public and business owners are asked to remain alert to any suspicious activity in their area, and to report any concerns to police online or by calling 101. Always dial 999 in an emergency.

There are a number of steps residents can take to property their property, including alarm systems and CCTV cameras, for a range of crime prevention advice, support and tips to keep you and your property safe click here.

If you have been the victim of a burglary, please report online, or by calling 101 – always dial 999 in an emergency/burglary in action.

Help us keep Sussex safe

If you saw or heard anything, or have any information about any incident in this message please contact us online, or call 101, quoting the reference number provided.

Alternatively you can contact the independent charity Crimestoppers, anonymously, on 0800 555 111, or online at www.crimestoppers-uk.org

You can also visit our website at www.sussex.police.uk where you can find our easy to use online forms to report all non-emergencies to us.

On our website you can also find police advice to keep you safe and help you understand the law, and also browse our crime prevention pages for first-hand knowledge, industry best practices and practical crime prevention advice from officers and specialist teams all across the police.

Have you ever had a policing question that doesn't actually require direct police involvement to answer?

Ask the Police is a great online source of information for the most frequently asked policing questions, visit www.askthe.police.uk/ for more information.

Your local teams

What's happening in your area?

Get the latest crime statistics and advice, help us with appeals for information and find out what we’re doing to tackle crime in your area online here.

Follow your local Police team on social media, click below:

Facebook

Twitter

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