Targeted operation drives down burglary rates by 10% in Doncaster

Launched earlier this year, Op Castle is a dedicated, detective-led response, that deals with all incidents of burglary in people’s homes across the city.

This team of experienced detectives works to target known burglars, using up-to-date local intelligence to identify trends and focus their proactive work and patrols. They work closely with the force’s offender management team so thy know when burglars are back in our communities.

They also have a detailed knowledge of the forensic and evidential requirements to secure charges and ensure successful convictions at court.

As well as a 10 per cent reduction in burglary, and an increase in detection rates, the team has arrested 47 people on suspicion of burglary, with 20 of them remanded into custody. They have secured 79 charges against 21 people and have also begun securing successful convictions as these cases come to court.

Detective Sergeant James Wiggins, who leads the response, said: “We understand the significant impact that burglary has on victims, and through Op Castle we are working tirelessly to both reduce the number of burglaries in Doncaster and apprehend those responsible.

“Thanks to our specialist knowledge, we are able to identify links between burglaries so they can be treated as a series, and then linking that series to an offender. This means they can be dealt with for the full extent of their offending rather than isolated incidents.”

This methodology is already proving successful, as the team has secured a number of charges and convictions at court.

Prolific burglar Lee Barnes was one of the first offenders identified and arrested by officers as part of Op Castle. In June, he was jailed for over eight years at Sheffield Crown Court. Barnes carried out his spate of offending in February this year, and on one occasion threatened his victim with a knife when he was caught in an upstairs bedroom.

The 45-year-old, of Washington Road in the Woodlands area of the city, pleaded guilty to aggravated burglary, five counts of residential burglary and four counts of attempted burglary. He also admitted robbery, seven counts of fraud, assault, possession of an offensive weapon and failing to provide a drugs test.

Det Sgt Wiggins continued: “As well as working to detect and arrest offenders, we also use the local intelligence we gather around the patterns of offenders to inform our patrol plans with a view to preventing burglaries from occurring in the first place.

“We employ a range of tactics, including both covert undercover and high visibility patrols in key hotspot areas to maximise our impact.

“We also value any information that the public has on burglaries in their area, no matter how small. This information from the public can further help us to direct our resources and prevent offences, and I would urge people to get in touch.

“Information can be passed to us via our online live chat on our website, our online portal, or by calling 101.”