How we are helping to keep our rural communities safe

Our Rural Engagement Team has been busy during the past year, working to keep farms, estates and rural communities across Essex safe.

They work with many partners to target crimes which specifically affect rural communities and businesses, including hare coursing and poaching, and the theft of agricultural vehicles and machinery.

A large part of the team’s work, as their name suggests, is engaging with farmers and agricultural workers, rural businesses and, of course, residents.

Inspector Terry Jacobs says the Rural Engagement Team (RET) was set up in 2017 specifically to connect with our rural communities and, as Essex is 72% rural, that’s a lot of ground to cover.

Our rural engagement officers undertook 3,337 hours of foot and vehicle patrols and set up 121 community events between 1 April 2023 and 31 March 2024.

Terry says:

“We know that rural communities can feel isolated so we try to meet with as many people as we can. Officers visited schools, spoke to parish councillors, dropped in on various village events and attended agricultural shows, which attract huge crowds.
“We have forged many valuable relationships over the past seven years and we depend on the people we meet to provide us with the intelligence and information we need to identify emerging crime trends and target our operational activity accordingly.
“Speeding on rural roads and road safety are major concerns. And so is the theft of vehicles and agricultural equipment. Such crimes can have a disproportionate effect on their victims, who may lose their only means of transport or even their livelihood if their vehicle is stolen.
“And, of course, machinery is very costly to replace. The impact of such crimes on rural businesses and communities cannot be underestimated.”

The team have seized or recovered 193 vehicles in the past year, including 74 stolen vehicles and 28 items of plant & machinery.

And they’ve been working with the National Construction and Agricultural Theft Team (NCATT) and the National Vehicle Crime Intelligence Service to identify and recover stolen vehicles and machinery.

Regular checks are made of lorries and trailers leaving through Essex ports. After one operation in December, officers recovered a telehandler and a van at Harwich International Port.

Intelligence received during the operation also led to the recovery a £40,000 Manitou telehandler and a second van.

Another RET investigation, this time involving NCATT and the National Rural Crime Unit (NRCU), has seen two people arrested on suspicion of money-laundering – one was also arrested on suspicion of theft. They are currently on police bail.

Reports of hare coursing dropped again in Essex. In the year to 31 March 2024,157 incidents were recorded, compared with 180 for the previous 12 months.

Part of this success is down to our joint working with forces across the Eastern Counties and in Kent under the banner of Operation Galileo, a borderless scheme which makes it easier for officers to catch offenders and bring them to justice.

Close working with the National Police Air Service (NPAS) helicopters and using our drones means we are more easily able to spot and track hare coursers so officers on the ground can locate and arrest them.

Terry says:

“We’ve seen a significant drop in hare coursing here in Essex since Operation Galileo launched in 2021. Our activity in the air means there’s a higher chance we’ll catch hare coursers and, when we do, the removal of policing borders makes it easier to prosecute.
“We also work closely with farmers, gamekeepers and estate staff, providing advice on how to prevent hare coursers from getting on to farmland.”

In one of the first cases of its kind in the country, two men arrested in Paglesham, near Rochford, were sentenced in July 2023 for trespassing with intent to search for, or to pursue, hares with dogs, a new offence introduced under section 63 of the Police, Crime, Courts and Sentencing (PCCS) Act 2022.

During the year, officers seized four vehicles involved in hare coursing.

Terry says:

“The cost of this vicious crime to farmers and landowners is not just about damage to gates and fences. There’s the loss of crops and damage to crop land when vehicles compact the soil and destroy the soil structure.”

Hares are not the only wildlife our RET seek to protect from cruel criminal activity.

Operation Traverse sees them working with partners such as the RSPCA, RSPCA and Angling Trust to prevent and deter illegal fishing and fish theft across Essex, to ensure wildlife is protected and anglers can enjoy their pastime safely.

While the team’s Rural, Wildlife and Heritage Crime officer PC Jed Raven is the national police lead for Operation Lakeshot, which focuses on people catapulting wild animals and birds in urban areas and country parks with metal ball bearings or bits of shot. The emphasis is on education and preventing re-offending as well as detection and bringing offenders to justice.

Terry explains:

“Protecting wildlife is an important part of our job. Rural engagement officers may also be called to investigate when wildlife is found dead in suspicious circumstances. Inquiries are being made into the deaths of two red kites found poisoned near Colchester late last year.
“Part of our function is to raise awareness of what wildlife is protected and the laws surrounding this protection. We also regularly work closely with the RSPCA on investigations.”

Heritage crime is another focus and the team work with farmers, partners and the wider community to protect a wide variety of scheduled ancient monuments, which are mostly situated in rural areas. They may be at risk of theft or irreparable damage caused by anti-social behaviour.

Terry says:

“We provide the owners and caretakers of historic buildings and museums with specialist crime prevention advice.
“Just as with our wildlife, we want to safeguard what heritage we have because it can’t be replaced. It is gone for ever and that leaves us all the poorer for it.”

Since the Rural Engagement Team was formed in 2017, we have seen a continuous reduction in unauthorised encampments across Essex.

In the 12 months to 31 March 2024, officers managed 70 unauthorised encampments, of which 14 (20%) were required to vacate the land. That’s a 63.5% reduction over the 2018/2019 year, which saw 192 unauthorised encampments in the county.

Rural road safety is another area of focus. Many road collisions in Essex occur on rural roads and speed is often a contributory factor.

Terry says:

“The team have carried out 409 hours of road safety operations in the past year and regularly stop vehicles if they suspect they are unsafe or the driver is committing an offence.
“We focus Speed 100 checks at rural hot-spots identified via feedback from community events and people we meet while patrolling. Rural road safety and speeding vehicles are often the hottest topics in our rural communities.”

Between 1 April 2023 and 31 March 2024, officers stopped and reported 1,147 people for traffic offences, ranging from the Fatal Four – drink/drug driving, speeding, driving while using a mobile phone and driving without a seatbelt – to vehicle defects and illegal modifications.

Our rural engagement officers have issued 13 community protection warnings and notices during the year, mostly for people who cause nuisance and anti-social behaviour in our rural communities, including hare coursing.

As well, in the past 12 months, officers also issued a number of postal requisitions summonsing people to appear at court for a variety of offences and made arrests for drink and drug-driving, other driving offences, assault, criminal damage, possession of drugs and offensive weapons, robbery and theft.

They also stopped and searched 223 people during the year. Terry explains that officers carry out stop and searches if they suspect a person is carrying stolen or prohibited goods, such as drugs or offensive weapons.

He adds:

“Officers use stop and search to keep people safe. They exercise this policing power sparingly but will use it if they suspect criminal activity. And, of course, stop and search can avoid arrests if the outcome is negative.”

Rural engagement

Our Rural Engagement Team provides specialist help and advice to tackle wildlife crimes, such as hare coursing, as well as heritage crimes affecting historic sites and buildings, thefts of agricultural machinery, large-scale organised fly-tipping and unauthorised encampments.

And they also liaise with partner agencies to take enforcement action against those who breach legislation and to tackle specific rural issues through proactive operations.

And you can visit our rural crime webpages for specific crime prevention advice. You can also find out about our farm and rural watch scheme.

If you see anything which you feel needs police attention, or you have information about a crime or criminal activity, always ring 999 if it is an emergency or a crime in progress.

Anyone who experiences or who has information about crime or anti-social behaviour, should ring 999 if it’s an emergency or a crime in progress.

Otherwise you can report it online where you can also provide information directly to an online Live Chat operator on weekdays (excluding bank holidays) between 10am and 9pm. Alternatively, you can ring 101.

You can also contact Crimestoppers, anonymously, online or by calling 0800 555 111.

What is hare coursing?

Hare coursing traditionally begins in September or October - depending on the weather - when crops have been harvested and ploughed, making them the perfect ground for the illegal blood sport.

Hare coursing causes damage to crops, harms animal welfare and threatens rural communities. It can result in intimidation and even violence.

Landowners are urged to consider blocking entrances to their fields with ditches, fencing or trees or even barriers like barrels filled with concrete.

What can I do to help?

If you see hare coursing taking place, ring 999 immediately and provide as much information as you can – for example, a What3Words location, a description of the people involved, vehicle registration numbers, vehicle descriptions and the location and direction of travel.

When the police give you a reference number, please put this and the day’s date into any WhatsApp groups you are a part of so that anyone in the area with information can ring us and we can link it to the same incident, if relevant.

However, it is very important that you don’t confront hare coursers or put yourself at risk.

Anyone who experiences or who has information about crime, criminal activity or anti-social behaviour, should ring 999 if it’s an emergency or a crime in progress.

Otherwise you can report it online where you can also provide information directly to an online Live Chat operator on weekdays (excluding bank holidays) between 10am and 9pm. Alternatively, you can ring 101.

You can also contact Crimestoppers, anonymously, online or by calling 0800 555 111.