| 25 November 2011
...whilst the Mayor of London Boris Johnson warns: "Criminals beware - we're stepping up a gear to crack down on the drug dealers, burglars and thieves that make our lives a misery. Operation Hawk means our hard working Safer Neighbourhoods teams will be keeping an even closer eye on crime hot spots.”
So far there have been:
- 580 operations
- 264 warrants executed
- 278 arrests
- 39 weapons seized
- 14 drug houses closed
Met use Twitter to provide Londoners with live updates on #ophawk @metpoliceuk
Vigilance can confirm that as part of the Metropolitan Police Commissioner's 'war on crime' a major operation cracking down on neighbourhood criminals began yesterday, Thursday 24 November.
Vigilance learnt that Operation Hawk will see up to 4,000 Safer Neighbourhoods officers and PCSOs, supported by specialist colleagues including the Dogs Unit and Territorial Support Group, carrying out robust and visible operations in one day across London's 32 boroughs.
A Met source said officers are responding directly to community intelligence to target drug dealers, perpetrators of anti-social behaviour and other criminals who impact on communities.
The Police are said to be utilising the services of the social media in sending live Twitter updates about activity taking place across the 32 London boroughs throughout the one day crackdown.
Londoners’ feedbacks on Twitter are shown below:
#F @metpoliceuk for an excellent, in-op, example of public reassurance and proactive use of social media #ophawk (from @duncmck7)
Wow! @metpoliceuk are going for it. Brilliant! #ophawk (from curlykale1)
Go metropolitan police! :) #Ophawk (from @cathy_perks)
Launching the operation yesterday, Metropolitan Police Commissioner Bernard Hogan-Howe said: "Operation Hawk is another way to tackle criminals decisively and directly. It's all about responding to local concerns and acting on them to crack down on crime rapidly and effectively.”
MPC Hogan-Howe added: "The idea is that we take our intelligence to a magistrate ask for a warrant and 'put the doors in' as quickly as possible right across London. It's a renewed emphasis on Safer Neighbourhoods teams making the most of local intelligence and acting on it. To help us do this, we need to encourage communities to talk to us and report concerns, but then we must reward this trust, by delivering swift results and telling people what action we have taken.”
According to the MPC Operation Hawk demonstrates Total Policing at its best, working directly with the people we are here to protect.
He said: "Communities are likely to see more operations of this kind from their Safer Neighbourhoods teams, who, through their ongoing engagement, will continue to address local crime and safety concerns to help make London safer."
Vigilance’s Intelligence and Policing Team gathered that Operation Hawk began with a public call to action through a series of radio ads launched on 16 November, urging Londoners to pass community intelligence about crime and disorder to their Safer Neighbourhoods Teams (SNTs). This is in addition to the usual methods of information gathering, such as SNT surgeries, forums and public meetings.
The focus is on telling residents about what action has been taken by officers to address their issues- with signage placed outside searched addresses and flyers and newsletters distributed.
Leading yesterday's operation, Acting Commander Carl Bussey said: "Informing the public of the action taken in response to information received is as important as doing the operations. Only with the public's support and information, can we effectively tackle the issues that are of concern to communities.”
ACmdr Bussey added: "Every ward in London has a dedicated policing team working with and for local communities to tackle crime and safety issues.With your help, we can make your area safer. Tell your Safer Neighbourhoods team who is committing crime, disorder or anti social behaviour in your area and we'll help to make it stop.”
Whilst the Mayor of London Boris Johnson warned: "Criminals beware - we're stepping up a gear to crack down on the drug dealers, burglars and thieves that make our lives a misery. Operation Hawk means our hard working Safer Neighbourhoods teams will be keeping an even closer eye on crime hot spots."