Police have been cracking down on train and bus passengers bringing knives into Lichfield.
Mobile metal detectors were deployed at Lichfield City Station as part of a joint operation between Staffordshire Police and the British Transport Police.
Inspector Jed White, Commander of Lichfield Neighbourhood Policing Unit said:
“Thankfully, knife crime is extremely rare, but it is an issue which concerns many people in the community, particularly parents of teenage children. As a parent of young children I know families are also worried about drugs because of the corrosive effect they have on individuals and families and the anti-social behaviour associated with such criminal activities.
“I hope this joint operation with British Transport Police sends out a very clear message – crime and anti-social behaviour of any kind will not be tolerated and operations such as this will continue in order to ensure Lichfield remains a safe and secure place for people to live, work and visit.”
The crackdown is part of Operation Shield – a national campaign to detect and deter knife crime on the rail network.
The metal detectors can be deployed anywhere in the country and it has been successful in removing hundreds of knives and other weapons from the railway since it was first introduced.
Sergeant Julie Everett, of the British Transport Police added:
“The metal detectors have already proved to be an extremely useful additional tool in detecting and deterring anyone who thinks they can carry weapons on the rail network.
“We are pleased we are able to work with colleagues at Staffordshire Police to ensure members of the public can travel without disruption or the fear of becoming a victim of crime.”
The last Operation Shield at Lichfield railway station resulted in three arrests for possession of drugs, one street warning for possession of cannabis and one arrest for possession of a dangerous weapon.
[…] total 150 people were searched as part of the operation. Despite the presence of the metal detectors in the station no weapons were found. Tagged with: British Transport […]
i walked straight past the sniffer dogs n i had a joint in my pocket ha ha haaaa
Very humorous Carlos – now the whole of Lich now knows you’re an idiot :)
Your mother must be so proud Carlos…
ye she was proud cos i saved her 2z on it lol n wat u mean speed? n how am i an idiot if i didnt get nabbed lol
Carlos, sometimes it is better to remain silent, and perhaps be thought a fool, rather than make your point and remove the doubt
Strikes me that using metal detectors to make street-checks might be a HRA violation.
The assumption seems to be made that because metal detectors are used at airports, it should be OK to do likewise on the street..The use of a metal detector at an airport is legal because ticket conditions forbid passengers to carry (undisclosed) metal onto a plane. This is not the case on the street, nor on public transport.
Let us be clear that we are talking about metal detectors, not knife detectors. It is perfectly legal to carry or wear metal on the street, so long as that metal does not form part of a weapon. Therefore the harrassment of persons carrying or wearing metal would seem to be a violation of the HRA, Article 6 principle that ‘No person may be detained on the basis of an act which is not in itself a crime.’
hmmm dnt think so steve u dnt kno wat ur talkin about how am i a fool? u are the fool u foolish man