New specialist crime team hits the road running
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Officers from a new specialist 24-hour unit introduced to tackle crime on Staffordshire’s roads and make them safer made three arrests and recovered seven stolen vehicles in their first day of action.
Our Road Crime Team (RCT) was launched yesterday (Tuesday 1 October) and is already making an impact.
Working with partners, including trading standards and the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA), in the first 24-hour shift officers:
- Recovered seven stolen vehicles
- Arrested a man wanted for a serious assault
- Arrested a man wanted for theft offences
- Arrested a man for drug driving
- Submitted 33 traffic offence reports for issues including insecure loads, tyres with insufficient tread, drivers using mobile phones, and driving at excess speeds
- Carried out 11 roadside breath tests and two drug wipes
- Seized five uninsured vehicles
- Deployed off-road motorbikes to hotspot locations
- Attended multiple incidents on the motorway network in Staffordshire
- Pulled over a driver for failing to comply with a Red X lane closure following a collision on the M6 motorway
Chief Inspector Scott McGrath, who leads the Road Crime Team, said: “This is a fantastic start for the team and I am extremely proud of all those who have worked tirelessly to make this happen.
“Today we have deployed skilled on-road and off-road motorcyclists, operated a checksite with partners to ensure that everyone using the road network is doing so legitimately and legally, had stolen vehicle examiners recovering property and officers on the road network looking for those on our most wanted list.
“Our sights are firmly focused on the safety of our county’s roads and taking the fight to criminals who think that it’s acceptable to use them for criminality, including the distribution of drugs and exploiting vulnerable members of our communities.”
Read more about the Road Crime Team here: https://www.staffordshire.police.uk/news/staffordshire/news/2024/september/new-247-road-crime-team-introduced-to-tackle-priorities-in-staffordshire/