#StaySafe Handling
Stay Safe: Think you’ve grabbed a bargain? Who grabbed
it first…
Bedfordshire Police is committed to disrupting the market for
stolen goods.
Of course it is tempting to buy cheap goods, but the real cost
of your bargain is a victim of crime – it could be you or a
relative whose home is broken into, it could be your child’s bike
stolen or your neighbour’s car window smashed for the ‘sat nav’
inside.
So the next time you’re browsing a boot fair, online auction
site or offered cheap goods elsewhere, consider this. £20 for an
MP3 player might seem like a great deal, and it is – but the person
who it was stolen from paid a lot more.
Handling stolen goods is punishable by prison. The
definition of this offence under section 22(1) of the Theft Act
1968 is:
A person handles stolen goods if knowing or believing them to be
stolen goods he dishonestly receives the goods, or dishonestly
undertakes or assists in their retention, removal, disposal or
realisation by or for the benefit of another person, or if he
arranges to do so.
This includes:
- Receiving stolen goods
- Arranging to receive them
- Undertaking the keeping, removing, disposing of or realisation
of stolen goods by or for the benefit of another person, or helping
with any of those things
If you aren't sure where the item you're buying has come from,
please don’t buy it.
Tell us where and when you saw these goods for sale by
calling 101 or text information to 07786 200011.
Don't Make it easy...
By protecting yourself and your property, you can help disrupt
the market for stolen goods.
Personal Safety:
- Keep your mobile telephone and other valuables out of
sight
- The chances of your property being returned to you are far
greater if they are registered with http://www.immobilise.com/
Register yours for free NOW. It only takes a couple of minutes
In Your Vehicle
- Always remove equipment like sat-navs and the cradle from your
vehicle
- Never leave valuables on display in your vehicle
In Your Home
- Use your lights – keep them on a timer. Make sure they are
switched on early even if you leave them on whilst going shopping
or on the school run. And remember; use the lights in a main room
and not in the hall way so it looks like someone is home.
- Keep your radio switch on and tuned in to a talk station so it
sounds like someone is at home.
- Make sure your doors are securely locked at all times. If you
have UPVC door make sure they are double locked.
- Lock all windows and fit restricters – thieves can wriggle
through any gap larger than a human head.
- Fit locks at the top and bottom of patio doors.
- Visible alarms make burglars think twice – make sure you switch
them on when you go out.
- Never leave garages or sheds unlocked.
- Check for weak spots and sagging fences on your boundary.
- Stop a thief from getting into the back of the house where he
can work unseen by fitting a strong, high gate across a side
passage.
- Be alert to strangers loitering in the street. If you
don’t recognise them or they are acting suspiciously, call the
police on 101.