Rural priorities will be acted on - says Police Inspector

TACKLING rural thefts, reducing speeding & dangerous driving, and curbing anti-social behaviour in Cullybackey and Broughshane have been confirmed as priority crime issues which will be tackled by police over the next three months, Ballymena-based PSNI Inspector John Allen has said.

By The Newsroom

Published 15th Oct 2010, 16:58 BST

Updated 18th Oct 2010, 15:00 BST

Speaking to The Ballymena Times on Friday, the Inspector pointed out that those issues were agreed as a particular focus for police at a recent PACT (Rural Partners and Communities Together) meeting in Ballymena.

Successes, he said, had already been achieved in some of these crime categories in the past 12 months.

Regarding rural thefts, for example, the Inspector revealed that while rural burglaries and thefts in Ballymena from April to July of this year totalled 110, the number had fallen to 52 from July to October.

“This is a substantial decrease and is down to a number of factors including information from the public and proactive patrols,” he said.

Turning to statistics involving speeding/dangerous driving, he said that in H District, last year, there were 24 roads fatalities compared to two so far this year.

Inspector Allen urged anyone who notices suspicious activity in rural areas to contact the police immediately.

Ballymena PSNI