Fourteen arrests in one night after joint op targeting cross-border crime

Fourteen men were arrested after the latest operation targeting criminal activity along Essex’s borders with London and Hertfordshire.

Eleven of the individuals detained were arrested for burglary or related offences.

Operation Claymore is Essex Police-led but also involves officers from Hertfordshire, the Met and the National Police Air Service (NPAS).

The cross-force team track down vehicles believed to be involved in crime using hits from automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) cameras, with a particular focus on areas in and around Harlow and Epping Forest.

They are supported by specialists from our Dog, Roads, and Community Policing teams, as well as the Eastern Region Special Operations Unit (ERSOU).

Highlights of last night’s activity included the arrest of three men after a Bentley Bentayga stolen from Cambridgeshire was pursued and stopped on the M11, and two men being arrested after the pursuit of a stolen Toyota Aygo in Harlow ended in the occupants crashing and attempting to escape on foot.

There were also arrests for theft of a motor vehicle, drug driving, going equipped to steal, possession of class B drugs, and ABH.

Over the course of the night, officers conducted 13 stop searches and recovered nine lost or stolen vehicles.

This is the ninth time the three forces have worked together on Claymore with the operation leading to 67 arrests, 130 stop searches, 32 vehicle seizures and the submission of 100 intelligence reports.

PC Ross Ashcroft coordinated the operation. He said: “We are targeting organised criminal gangs who are using the road network to commit offences including burglary, car theft, and the supply of drugs.

“These criminals are travelling between counties and from one force area to another. We want to prevent them from crossing the borders and committing those offences.

“Getting different forces and teams to work together and share intelligence about the people and groups committing high-harm crime is invaluable.

“We were really pleased with the number of people we apprehended tonight and the disruption we caused to their activity.”

Superintendent Phil Stinger, Head of Specialist Operations, was out on the operation and hailed its impact.

He said: “The number of arrests we made overnight demonstrates the benefit of collaborating with neighbouring forces. We are creating a hostile environment for criminals to operate in and providing a significant deterrent.

“We take burglary and car theft extremely seriously and our teams are doing all they can track down and detain those responsible for these offences.”

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