1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
51
52
53
54
55
56
57
58
59
60
61
62
63
64
65
66
67
68
69
70
71
72
73
74
75
76
77
78
79
80
81
82
83
84
85
86
87
88
89
90
91
92
93
94
95
96
97
98
99
100
101
102
103
104
105
106
107
108
109
110
111
112
113
114
115
116
117
118
119
120
121
122
123
124
125
126
127
128
129
130
131
132
133
134
135
136
137
138
139
140
141
142
143
144
145
146
147
148
149
150
151
152
153
154
155
156
157
158
159
160
161
162
163
164
165
166
167
168 
TruckWatch to tackle North-West hot spot
Page 10
If you've noticed an error in this article please click here to report it so we can fix it.
By Joanna Bourke TRUCK WATCH, the truck crime reduction initiative, has opened a new division to combat Lancashire's reputation as a freight crime hot spot.
The move comes as a 15-month freight crime crackdown by police unit TruckPol approaches its conclusion in the North-West. with a network of criminals in Cheshire, Lancashire and Merseyside awaiting court decisions and sentences, Between July and September, there were 30 recorded lorry crimes — including HGV and load thefts — in Lancashire alone, and 57 similar incidents between January and August.
Detective Constable Andy Round, of TruckPol, suggests the area's vulnerability lies in its accessibility. "There are good transport motorway links in the area, lots of distribution centres and the Port of Liverpool, which makes it a target," Inspector Stuart Bruce of Lancashire Police, adds: "Freight crime can have an adverse effect on the economy with businesses staying clear of hot spot areas."
On 2 October, the North-West launched its own Truck Watch scheme, covering Cheshire, Cumbria, Greater Manchester, Lancashire and Merseyside.
The business crime team from Liverpool Chamber of Commerce will run the service in conjunction with TruckPol and the relevant police forces. A spokeswoman for Lancashire Police confirms that between 1 and 6 October, there were no recorded road freight crimes in the region.