Northern Ireland

PSNI launches operation to clampdown on burglaries

THE PSNI has announced a month-long operation aimed at tackling a rise in burglaries.

Sniffer dogs, property searches and road checkpoints to catch "travelling criminals" will be used as part of the clampdown.

Police recorded more than 7,200 burglaries between last April and January 25 2016, an increase of 2.1 per cent on the same period the previous year.

Of these, more than 4,800 were domestic burglaries, a 3.7 per cent increase.

Superintendent Simon Walls, the PSNI's lead officer for burglary, said police will also be providing advice and information to householders and businesses on how to secure their premises.

He said officers intend to have a "higher profile in communities, making sure any burglary hotspots are receiving increased attention".

"As part of the overall operational plan, we will also be mounting checkpoints on roads to clamp down on travelling criminals. There will also be liaison with our colleagues in An Garda Síochána," he said.

"The main motive for most burglaries, whether of domestic or commercial premises, is taking goods which can be turned into cash.

"We will be paying attention to locations where goods may be exchanged for cash and we will be deploying sniffer dogs to search buildings and vehicles which we suspect may be used to store or transport the proceeds of crime."

The clearance or 'success' rate for solving burglary crimes is running at 10.3 per cent, a slight drop of 0.3 per cent on the previous period.

For domestic burglaries the clearance rate is 8.8 per cent, a small drop of 0.2 per cent.