Chelmsford: Off-duty detectives make arrest over reports of damage to vehicles

Five detectives visiting a McDonald’s after a busy shift proved they are never off-duty when they arrested a man suspected of damaging cars and causing trouble outside the restaurant.

DS Lee Palmer, DC Clarke, and T/DCs Sayer, Tindale and Bocking, of Chelmsford CID, had completed an unrelated warrant in the area at around 7pm on Monday 31 July.

Now off duty, the team visited Boreham McDonald’s for a well-earned refreshment break and debrief.

Whilst there, they were approached by a member of staff who alerted them to the presence of a member of the public she alleged had regularly engaged in anti-social behaviour outside the restaurant.

The staff member also said she suspected the male to be responsible for damaging a number of cars in the Chelmsford area after recognising him through CCTV shared on social media.

After some fast-paced enquiries, the team made an arrest at the scene.

We have since charged Jake Carter, 27, of Meadgate Avenue, Chelmsford, with five counts of criminal damage and one count of possession of a Class B drug.

He appeared at Chelmsford Magistrates’ Court on Wednesday 2 August, where he denied the criminal damage charges.

He was released on conditional bail until a trial at Colchester Magistrates’ Court on 23 April next year.

'We will always listen to concerns about anti-social behaviour'

DS Palmer said:

“It doesn’t matter whether we are out on the street engaging with the public, or taking a well-earned break, we are here to listen and respond to any concerns raised by members of the public.
“I know anti-social behaviour and criminal damage are not ‘low level’ offences. They are priorities the people of Chelmsford want to see us working to stamp out.
“I would thank the member of staff who had the confidence to engage with us and report these matters.
“If we don’t know about anti-social behaviour, we can’t work to tackle it.”

Essex Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner is investing an extra £1.1 million in high-visibility patrols and targeted intervention to tackle anti-social behaviour (ASB) in eleven hotspots across the county.

Around 30,000 hours of officer and partner patrols will be undertaken over nine months across the areas, including coordinated focused nights of action to target persistent behaviour.

The funding is provided from central government as part of their Anti-Social Behaviour Strategy and is designed to deliver high visibility patrols, public engagement, targeted youth outreach and early intervention.

ASB has fallen in Essex by over 60% since 2016 but there were still 18,771 ASB offences recorded in the year to the end of May 2023.

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