Snap a crime and shop-a-yob
Police in Greater Manchester are asking people to shop-a-yob by snapping pictures or video footage on their mobile phones and sending the footage to the police.
Police in Greater Manchester are asking people to shop-a-yob by snapping pictures or video footage on their mobile phones and sending the footage to the police.
There were more than 76,000 reports of criminal damage in the city last year costing a staggering £66.3 million.
Now they have set up an online intelligence reporting form through the GMP website for witnesses to pass on evidence as attacks happen.
Police say it reflects the reality that people with camera phones often record incidents when they happen. The footage could be used as evidence in possible court cases.
Chief Supt Steve Hartley, GMPs lead on volume crime, said: We have a new online intelligence reporting form, so can now accept photo and video images and are encouraging people, only when it is safe to do so, to use technology to capture the offence and send it on to the police.
Criminal damage is a mindless crime and blights our communities, making areas feel unsafe and unwelcoming.
On Friday, GMP released CCTV footage of a number of incidents, including a boy putting his foot through a window pane, children shattering the sides of bus shelters, youngsters destroying the panels of a telephone kiosk and instances of graffiti.
They say that there were 76,568 reports of criminal damage recorded by GMP last year, between April 2006 and March 2007. Each incident of criminal damage costs an average of £166.