Suffolk Police have brought out a new policing tactic set to tackle crime. Project Servator is set to disrupt criminal activity, including terrorism, as well as providing a reassuring presence for the public. Police officers will be expected to be deployed at anytime and anywhere. Highly visible officers as well as plain clothed officers will be deployed by this new tactic which will also see resources such as dogs, horses and firearms officers being used.

The tactics have been developed and tested by security experts at the Centre for the Protection of National Infrastructure in partnership with the City of London Police.

The deployments are designed to make the environment as uncomfortable as possible for criminals to plan or carry out their activities.

Suffolk police attended launch events today, Thursday June 9th, to promote their new project. The events took place in Ipswich at the Cornhill at 10am and in Bury St Edmunds on Angel Hill at 13:30 pm.

Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) Tim Passmore was in attendance at both events and said this will allow us to “look at the way people behave, liaise with local people in the town and looking for suspicious circumstances or people who would perhaps be doing harmful activities”. Mr. Passmore supports this project saying “it’s about public confidence, greater visibility and building on the work we’ve done with our new Kestrel team which is paid for by people’s Council Tax”.

When questioned on how the public could help the police and whether this is risky, inspector Matt Breeze defended the new project saying “our greatest partnership is the partnership between the police and the public”. He said that the police cannot be everywhere at once and that the public are “our eyes and ears” and believes the public accept that relationship. He continued to say “what we do want to foster is that relationship and if someone sees something that they are not happy with to give us a call 101 or come on the website”.

The PCC said he is a “real fan of this and really really enthusiastic”. Mr. Passmore has said Project Servator is new to Suffolk but has happened else where in the country like London, he said “it hasn’t had the focus this will have. It’s about the public engagement which is much stronger than it was”. Mr. Passmore insists that this concentrated police presence will show people that the police are about and said there is “far more undercover work than people realise and you don’t see that when you’re walking around”.

Inspector Matt Breeze has asked the public to be vigilant and “if they see something that seems a bit suspicious give us a call and let us go and investigate it”.

 

By Alasdair English
@AlasdairEnglish