Police on patrol to end gang warfare in Sheffield
Police Day of Action, Parson Cross, Sheffield
TEAMS of police took to the streets in a blitz to tackle gang crime on a Sheffield estate.
About 30 officers raided houses in Parson Cross and tracked down offenders as part of a second crackdown on organised crime which has blighted the area in recent weeks due to a feud between two rival groups.
The latest crackdown saw nine people arrested or dealt with in the street for offences ranging from non-payment of fines, drug possession and drug production to burglary and robbery.
It was the second phase of an operation which saw 21 people arrested in a day of action last week.
Police are keen to keep a visible presence in the area to attempt to end the feud, which has seen shootings on the street.
Since September, officers have been called to 25 incidents involving rival gangs in Parson Cross.
For the past 14 days, since the police action started, there have been no reports of similar offending.
Superintendent Shaun Morley, who is behind the operation, said: “One of our objectives is to send out a visible and reassuring message to the community.
“The fact we have had no incidents relating to that issue shows we are having a direct effect on criminality.
“We will continue to do it until some sort of normality is restored.”
Inspector Simon Leake took to social network Twitter to feed updates on the progress of the operation throughout the day.
And in a testament to the community’s gratitude to the police, youngsters gave a round of applause to PCSOs as they passed their school.
Mr Morley said: “That was the thing I found significant, a couple of PCSOs had been on patrol and came back and said they were clapped as they walked past a school.
“It shows members of the community are recognising the impact we are having on this issue.
“From our point of view we are positively influencing criminality. We’ve reacted quickly to try to bring it under control.”
* Anyone with information should call South Yorkshire Police on 101 or Crimestoppers on 0800 555111.
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Weather for Beverley
Thursday 23 May 2013
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