PS Walshaw states

I think you will see from the below report that again we have been busy

in tackling crime across the 4 areas of business, being Rural, Wildlife,

Heritage and Environmental Crime.

The team have recovered a significant amount of stolen property which

has been returned to the owners.

The trial of Farm Watch WhatsApp continues in the East of the county

with groups covering Dover/Canterbury, Romney Marsh, Thanet and

Ashford with over 300 members across the groups. There have already

been some great results and valuable information shared amongst the

group which has assisted in the recovery of stolen property and helped

our partners with investigations into fly tipping offences.

As we move into the spring months and the hopefully warmer weather

the team will be preparing for OP Unripe (soft fruit theft offences).

Growers will be visited and provided with crime prevention advice etc.

Here is a snapshot of the work carried out by the Rural Liaison Team

(RLT) over the last six weeks.

Thefts

The whole RTF executed a search warrant issued under the Theft Act in

Canterbury. The intention was to locate stolen quad bikes. A search was

conducted of the site. No stolen quads bikes were located. Some small

items of plant and other small electrical items were seized as they were

suspected to be stolen and enquiries are ongoing to identify owners.

Enquires were was also completed in relation to the animals on the site

and their living conditions, further enquiries together with RSPCA will be

made regarding animal welfare concerns.

The RTF seized a suspected stolen Range Rover from an address in

West Kingsdown. The vehicle was inspected by Kent Police Vehicle

Examiner’s and confirmed to have been stolen from the London area in

December 2018. Further enquires revealed a second vehicle linked to

the same address had similar suspected false ID. This second vehicle

was seized and through consultation with the vehicle examiners this

was also identified as a stolen vehicle.

PC’s Smith and Pennicott conducted follow up work with a famer in

Maidstone who had lost a utility vehicle and various items other such as

a generator, strimmer’s and hedge cutters. The total loss value was

estimated to be between £20,000-£30,000. From speaking to the

farmer, officers established lines of enquiry and CCTV showed the stolen

vehicle in convoy with another vehicle, which had no number plates,

shortly after the theft had taken place. Based on this information they

attended an address and conducted a search in nearby woodland.

During the search the stolen vehicle was located along with some of the

stolen power tools. These items were recovered for forensic

examination.

In addition to locating the above items, a Water Bowser was also found

which was established to have been stolen from a building site in

Maidstone. This was seized and the owners were updated.

PS Walshaw and PC Williams attended a location in Oare with Traffic

officers responding to a tracker activation on a quad bike stolen from

Folkestone. The quad was located inside a building at a recycling centre.

The business owner admitted to buying the quad the previous day. The

Quad has been return to the owner and enquires continue.

PC Verrall attended a farm in Detling with Metropolitan Police from Plant

Agricultural National Intelligence Unit at Scotland Yard. This was in

response to a tracker activation on a stolen commercial compressor. The

tracker led them to a farm building being used by a company whose

owners attended the location. The stolen compressor was found locked

in a lockup along with a lot of other tools and equipment. The officers

checked all the equipment and confirmed stolen was a second

compressor, road rollers, a trench wacker, road breaker, cable locating

equipment, two Leica Scanners, a vibrating plate engine, generators

and a portable toilet. In addition, stolen roadworks signs and barriers

were found in the yard. All items were seized and both suspects were

arrested for Theft and Handling Stolen Goods. Extensive enquiries will

need to be conducted to get the property returned as the thefts are

county wide from hire companies and building sites.

PC Verrall received a phone call from a farmer reporting that a tractor

stolen from him in January had been seen on a lane in the Marden area.

PC Verrall attended and after going through field’s located a plot of land

which contained various cut up vehicles, machinery, trailers, horses and

dogs. The owner informed PC Verrall that he didn’t have a workable

tractor on his land however the victim’s tractor was located at the back

of the land attached to a trailer. The land owner was therefore arrested

for Theft and the tractor was recovered.

Further searches of the land located a twin axle trailer stolen in 2007

from Ashford. A retention notice was placed on it as it was logistically

impossible to remove the trailer at the time.

Also found was a stolen Whacker plate stolen from a hire company in

Detling.

PC Williams followed a vehicle that had been travelling at speed in

convoy with a second vehicle, to a safe place to carry out a stop check

in Doddington Village. Once PC Williams illuminated his lights the

suspect vehicle made off at speed overtaking the convey vehicle. As PC

Williams passed the convoy vehicle it slowed him down allowing the

suspect vehicle to create some distance. PC Williams continued to

pursue the subject vehicle around a bend to find that the suspect vehicle

had stopped and was reversing towards him. PC Williams anticipated the

vehicle was about to ram him but he was unable to reverse due to the

convoy vehicle now positioning directly behind him. After reversing at

speed into the police vehicle the suspect vehicle made off again. PC

Williams continued to follow the vehicle for about 1 mile into Newnham

Village where the suspect vehicle again attempted to ram the police car,

before attempting to turn into hedgerow to go across fields. The suspect

vehicle was unable to complete this as it hit a tree and one person

decamped from it. The dog unit and police helicopter were deployed but

due to the time frame, the suspect had managed to get away from the

area. The vehicle had sustained significant damage and checks revealed

it to have been stolen earlier that evening from Sussex with the owner

not aware his vehicle was missing.

Around £25,000 worth of model trains were stolen from containers in

Gravesend. PC Goodsall conducted enquires with the victim, which have

suggested the items have been offered for sale out of county. At this

time the model trains have not been recovered

Following a ram raid at a village store in High Halden, Rural East officers

PC’s Perry and Moody attended the location of a burnt out vehicle that

was used in the offence. Investigations are continuing.

Officers deployed to a report of a theft in progress in Denton. A call was

received with a witness reporting that people were removing Kent peg

tiles from a property he knew to be unoccupied. He provided

information concerning the incident, suspects and a vehicle being used

including an index and the sign writing on the vehicle which confirmed it

to be a hire vehicle (who were totally unaware it was being used for

crime). Officers managed to locate the vehicle travelling away from the

scene but upon turning around, the vehicle disappeared. The team

continued to search for the vehicle and located it within two hours and

three occupants were detained. The three males were arrested on

suspicion of Burglary and conveyed to Canterbury Police custody. The

vehicle was recovered.

PC’s Verrall and Lingham were deployed in West Kent with KMTV in

crew. A reporter who is a follower of the RTF’s Twitter account had

seen a number of posts regarding our work combatting theft of

Landrover Defenders and was keen to see the work our team undertake

in dealing with this. During the course of the shift they were subject to

deployments to a suspicious vehicle on the North Downs, Pro-active

patrolling and the locating of a burnt out 4x4 which turned out to be a

Landrover Defender stolen from Marden in December 2018.

The team located a stolen Landrover in Bethersden. PC’s Lingham and

Verrall conducted an area search which located a number of items

including an imported Mitsubishi Shogun. A Landrover that was

confirmed stolen from Rolvenden was also found.

Also located was a wood chipper confirmed to have been stolen from

Chartham and belonging to a plant hire company. The RTF deployed to

the location to assist the officers with a further search of the area.

Whilst there, PC Lingham retrieved a set of number plates from a

second stolen Landrover and located a further confirmed stolen Twin

Axle Ifor Williams Trailer. Following a comprehensive search of the

location in day light hours and surrounding woodlands, further vehicles

were located in various states. A local farmer attended and assisted

officers in the recovery of the trailer from the site which was then

returned to the lawful owner. Further investigation is being carried out

into the other stolen items.

Officers attended a report of a trailer being found in communal car park

in Maidstone. The trailer was located and confirmed as being stolen

from Bethersden. Contact was made with the victim who attended the

location and recovered the trailer.

Traffic Incidents

The west team assisted other units in Holly Hill following a vehicle

failing to stop. The 4x4 vehicle had struck a member of a youth scout

group involved in an organised walking event. Life threatening injuries

were sustained and the male victim was taken to hospital. PC Lingham

assisted in area searches for the suspect vehicle which was located in

Meopham having been set alight. The driver has since been arrested.

PC’s Smith and Pennicott stopped a suspicious vehicle in Maidstone. It

was seized for having no insurance and its two male occupants stated

that they had been driving it around for several months without

insurance.

Officers attended a road traffic collision involving a lorry and a car on a

roundabout in Sittingbourne. The car driver had sustained a minor neck

injury.

PC’s Goodsall and Southern attempted to stop a suspicious vehicle in

Faversham. Upon seeing the officers it made off and was found

abandoned with the two occupants running across fields. One occupant

was seen running to his mother’s address and after a search of this

address he was arrested for Disqualified Driving and Driving with No

Insurance. The male was dealt with in custody by the officers and

charged with these offences.

Officers deployed to a blockage on the A228. A tree had fallen as a

result of high winds and had blocked a carriage way on A228 between

the Hop Farm and Five Oak Green. The road was closed and traffic

control was carried out.

Officers assisted in Detling Hill with a Road Traffic Collision where a road

closure was in place and vehicles were awaiting recovery. The driver of

first vehicle was conveyed by the officers off the fast road network to a

place of safety to be collected.

A suspicious vehicle was seen in Sissinghurst and attempted to make off

from officers but got stuck behind a bus. The vehicle was blocked in

and the driver was detained. Initially gave his details but checks on

these details showed him as only holding a provisional licence and

having no insurance. The vehicle was seized and the male was reported

for summons to court.

A stop check was carried out in Canterbury following a phone call

received from a farmer. A vehicle had been seen to drive into a yard and

asked if they had scrap metal. The vehicle was spotted a short time later

and stopped. The vehicle was found to be un-insured so was seized and

a Traffic Offence Report was issued.

Sheep Worrying

Court result re incident at Eastling before Christmas, Christopher OCHS

pleaded Guilty at Court and received a conditional discharge for 12

months. Ordered to pay £307.84 Compensation and £85 costs.

A report was received via the Rural East phone from a farmer in Pett

Bottom, reporting a sheep attack where several sheep had been killed

and injured. When officers attended it was found that three sheep had

been killed and a further six were injured. Swabs were taken from one

of the carcasses.

A sheep attack was reported at a farm in Eastchurch. The farmer had

returned home to find her sheep in a huddle on her fields. She then saw

her neighbour’s dog within the sheep. The dog had managed to jump

the fence back to its address. No dog bite was identified however at

least three sheep were seen hobbling around.

Wildlife Warrant

Following an investigation by the RSPCAs Special Operations Unit into

Baiting and Illegal Hunting, three simultaneous warrants were executed

at separate addresses. At a location in Ashford, trousers and a mobile

phone possibly linked to the offences were seized and a male was

interviewed at Folkestone police station.

In Maidstone the male suspect was not home but was spoken to via

telephone during which he was abusive towards officers and refused to

return to the address. A search was conducted of the dwelling and

outbuildings. Three mobile phones and a laptop were seized.

At the third location also in Maidstone the mother of the suspect advised

police that he was on holiday abroad. A search was carried out and

several items were seized including a large amount of cannabis resin,

three mobile phones and a suspected stolen vehicle whose identity had

been changed. Also found were two dead horses and six live horses that

were suffering from animal welfare issues. Whilst the warrant was

being executed a male arrived at the address and claimed ownership for

some of the seized horses. A second male, related to the suspect,

arrived and blocked the lane to prevent officer’s access. He was

extremely aggressive and due his actions was arrested for the wildlife

offences and for Obstructing a Police Officer

The arrested male provided a no comment interview but did sign

ownership of the seized horses over to the RSPCA. He has been released

under investigation where the RSPCA will conduct their follow on

enquiries with Kent police.

Officers attended an address in Hartley in relation to a report that a

male was cutting down trees and blocking a badger sett. The owner

has been suitably advised re the legislation and his lawful obligations all

work has stopped for relevant surveys and licences to be obtained.

Op Assist

PC’s Pennicott, Smith, Goodsall and Southern deployed on Op Assist with

Maidstone Borough Council. One vehicle was seized for waste carrying

offences and three Fixed Penalty Notices were issued.

PC’s Perry, Moody, Williams, Goodsall and Special Constable Charlton

engaged in Op Assist with Thanet District Council.

In total thirteen vehicles were stopped and checked by the East Rural

Team.

A vehicle was seized for having No Insurance and issued with a £300

Fixed Penalty Notice for having no waste carriers licence.

Thanet District Council Enforcement Officers issued a £400.00 fine to a

resident in Margate.

PC’s Goodsall and Williams stop checked a total of nine vehicles during

the operation.

One vehicle was stopped carrying waste and the driver was issued with

a producer for waste carriers licence and waste transfer notice. In

addition he was issued a Traffic Offence Report for having no MOT and

Taxation offences.

A French registered vehicle was stopped carrying waste. The English

driver claimed to have a French driving licence and insurance. He

produced an out of date certificate and following extensive checks it

transpired that he had a pending court case for driving with no

insurance and still had no valid insurance. Consequently the vehicle was

seized. The driver also issued with a Fixed Penalty Notice for having no

waste carriers licence.

A vehicle was seen parked in Ramsgate being loaded with scrap metal.

The driver was issued with producers for a waste carriers licence and

waste transfer notice. The vehicle also had two broken leaf springs so

the driver was strongly advised of the consequences of what will happen

if he drove it.

A phone call was received reporting fly tipping in Chartham Hatch. On

arrival officers located some documents that may help identify where

the waste has come from. An email was sent to Canterbury City Council

Environment enforcement Team regarding this.

In March three police officers were deployed on Op Assist with four

Environmental officers across Swale and Maidstone. Two waste producer

notices were issued to stopped vehicles.

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One driver in Detling was issued with a notice requiring them to carry

out repairs to their vehicle within 14 days.

Another vehicle was stopped in the Maidstone area and the driver was

issued with a Traffic Offence Report for having no insurance or road tax.

The vehicle was seized by Maidstone Borough Council waste crime team

for waste offences and the driver was issued with a £300 Fixed Penalty

Notice and recovery costs.

A tipper vehicle was stopped in Stockbury and Maidstone Borough

Council waste crime team issued a £300 Fixed Penalty Notice for not

having a waste carriers licence.

A further vehicle was stopped in Maidstone and checks showed the

driver was not covered on the insurance policy and was reported for

having no insurance and issued with a Traffic Offence Report.

Loose Animals

RTF officers assisted Traffic units with two loose horses on a slip road on

the M20. The horses were caught, tethered and seized. The owner was

never located and per the seizure policy the horse have now been

rehomed.

PC’s Goodsall and Southern attended a report of twelve horses straying

onto a road in Sittingbourne. This had been happening multiple times in

the last few months. The horses were straying from a location in

Murston. Enquiries have been made recently to identify the owner, since

these enquires were made there have been no further issues reported.

Another horse was located near a field in Sittingbourne and was walked

back to the field. The fence was fixed at the location to prevent it

straying again.

PC’s Verrall and Lingham responded to a phone call from the RSPCA on

the RTF phone in relation to a report of a horse tethered near the

entrance to a park. It was reported that the horse was in a poor

condition. The RSPCA had attended and located more horses that were

suffering on the land nearby. A vet attended and three horses were

seized. When police arrived the land owners stated they had had horses

dumped on their land and couldn’t give a clear indication which horses

belonged to them. One of the horses was suffering from extreme

diarrhoea, a worm infestation and a poor body sore. A further horse had

a poor body sore and another had an untreated hind leg injury.

RTF officers responded to reports of a feral pig or boar seen over the

last two weeks in some woods. A farm owner managed to capture the

animal. Despite appeals over social media and via Farmwatch, no owner

has come forward, and the finder has contacted the animal rescue

centre at High Halden.

Officers deployed to a report of an injured Ewe having been located and

secured in Teston. The location was attended and the welfare of the

animal addressed through contact with RSPCA and their vet on call. Ear

tag numbers were obtained and checks made with Defra to identify the

flock number. The sheep has subsequently been returned to the owner

who advised that fencing had been damaged over the weekend, possibly

as a result of Road Traffic Collision. The sheep located some five miles

away from the field they were originally in.

Op Salmon

PC’s Southern and Goodsall dispatched along with the Swale Local

Policing Team to a report of poaching in progress in Sittingbourne. A

farmer had informed the officers that the offending vehicle was stuck in

the mud on his land and had caused damage to crops. On arrival, the

vehicle was located in middle of a field and it was clear that damage to

crops had been done. No persons were with the vehicle and checks

revealed that the vehicles owner had no insurance. The farmer assisted

in getting the vehicle dragged out of the field and it was seized.

North Team officers received a phone call reporting a vehicle had driven

through a grazing field in Faversham causing extensive damage to

electric fencing and had also hit two ewes who were both in lamb. PC’s

Williams and Goodsall attended and were present whilst the vet

examined the ewes. One of the ewe’s legs was so severely broken that

the vet put her to sleep immediately. The other ewe was recovered and

taken away to have its leg fixed and plastered. The vet mentioned that

despite the broken legs she could not find any evidence suggesting the

ewes had been hit by a vehicle. The vet’s view was the ewes had broken

the legs on the flint covered field whilst being spooked by the vehicle.

There were extensive tracks around the field leading to and from the

adjacent field suggesting hare coursing had taken place.

A report was received from a member of the public of a known male

driving down the lane catapulting out the window at a pheasant. He

appeared to leave after being told to but afterwards a local game keeper

drove around attempting to find him and noticed new damage caused to

a number of fields. Local Policing Team officers attended the location

and stopped a vehicle driven by the suspect and others. The male

claimed his dogs had escaped and he’d chased them onto the fields

before another male had driven into the fields and got stuck. The

offending vehicle was stuck in the mud and recovered via the landowner

and a tractor. The suspect denied being the driver and provided vague

details of another male who he said had been driving. The vehicle was

recovered and seized due to having been used in crime as it had caused

damage to land owned by natural England and also to crops in the

Surrey area. A second vehicle involved was seized for having no

insurance.

RLT officers attended Rochester and Cobham Golf course due three

recent reports of fence posts being rammed and a vehicle driving over

the golf course causing damage to the greens. Ground staff suspected

offenders were deer poaching but had found no supporting evidence. PC

Williams attended the location and conducted a search of the

surrounding areas. A deer carcass was found near the golf course on a

road with the legs removed. Whilst at the location PC Williams spoke

with security officers for channel tunnel rail which has provided a line of

enquiry to progress.

Engagement work by the RTF.

PC’s Perry and Moody attended Ashford Cattle Market. A meeting was

held prior to the livestock sales, which was well attended and introduced

by George ASHBY from the National Farmers Union. PC’s Perry and

Moody gave a presentation regarding the team expansion and the single

phone numbers for the East, North and West teams. There was an input

on online crime recording and appropriate methods of contacting Police.

Attendees were reminded about the importance of recording VIN

numbers and serial numbers of property, and property marking

schemes, as well as photographing property to assist with recovery and

identification. The new Farm Watch Whatsapp communication tool was

demonstrated, and well received, with several attendees joining straight

after the meeting. There was a discussion on sheep worrying attacks

and how the police are looking to move forward with the use of DNA

swabbing.

West RLT officers attended the Equine and Home crime prevention

evening with a local Police Community Support Officer and PC Ballard.

Also in attendance were Kent Horse Watch, Datatag and Home Security.

Kind Regards, Darren Walshaw

07870 252185 or darren.walshaw@kent.pnn.police.uk

Follow the team on Twitter @ Kent Police Rural

Team Email : rural.liaison.team@kent.pnn.police.uk