Informer
09-11-07, 02:26 PM
By Crime Reporter Leon Watson
UNDERCOVER cops have smashed an "organised crime gang" after spending a month infiltrating them.
The operation - codenamed Trilogy - targeted a ring of teenagers who allegedly launched a reign of terror across South London.
Offences understood to have been committed by them this year include a series of thefts, robberies and violent attacks in Lewisham, Southwark and Greenwich.
Police dismantling the gang have arrested 23 suspects aged 16 and older.
Operation Trilogy was sparked after specialist anti-gang crime cops received intelligence on crime and serious antisocial behaviour.
Inspector Sarah Davies, of Operation Trilogy, said: "Residents across the area had been complaining to police over several months about theft, violence and threatening behaviour on their streets.
"We mounted a series of initiatives to clear up crime in the area, including undercover tactics and zero tolerance to any offending.
"Our aim was to target individuals and dismantle the group we believed was behind the crime. We have made a significant impact on street crime in the area with local residents telling us how much difference it has made to their environment.
"When they see crime being tackled in this way, they know it is safe for them to come forward and support the agencies who are trying to make their neighbourhood safer.
"As well as enforcement work out on the streets, Lewisham police are working closely with Lewisham council on diversionary schemes to find longer term solutions to youth offending.
"We have a number of projects planned, including a series of workshops with young people to encourage them to think about the decisions they make on whether to join or not join in criminal activity.
"We know that young people join gangs for many reasons such as socialising or peer support.
"But where groups come together for criminal purposes, we will be targeting them.
"We are determined to put an end to criminal gangs on our streets."
Lewisham is a member of the Five Boroughs' Alliance on anti-gang crime, which covers Croydon, Greenwich, Lambeth, Lewisham and Southwark. [25cf] Eight males all aged between 16 and 20, from Deptford, Eltham and Forest Hill, have been charged in relation to this operation.
well done guys bobby
[Source (http://icsouthlondon.icnetwork.co.uk/0100news/0200southlondonheadlines/tm_headline=cops-crack-criminal-gang-from-inside&method=full&objectid=20085576&siteid=50100-name_page.html)]
UNDERCOVER cops have smashed an "organised crime gang" after spending a month infiltrating them.
The operation - codenamed Trilogy - targeted a ring of teenagers who allegedly launched a reign of terror across South London.
Offences understood to have been committed by them this year include a series of thefts, robberies and violent attacks in Lewisham, Southwark and Greenwich.
Police dismantling the gang have arrested 23 suspects aged 16 and older.
Operation Trilogy was sparked after specialist anti-gang crime cops received intelligence on crime and serious antisocial behaviour.
Inspector Sarah Davies, of Operation Trilogy, said: "Residents across the area had been complaining to police over several months about theft, violence and threatening behaviour on their streets.
"We mounted a series of initiatives to clear up crime in the area, including undercover tactics and zero tolerance to any offending.
"Our aim was to target individuals and dismantle the group we believed was behind the crime. We have made a significant impact on street crime in the area with local residents telling us how much difference it has made to their environment.
"When they see crime being tackled in this way, they know it is safe for them to come forward and support the agencies who are trying to make their neighbourhood safer.
"As well as enforcement work out on the streets, Lewisham police are working closely with Lewisham council on diversionary schemes to find longer term solutions to youth offending.
"We have a number of projects planned, including a series of workshops with young people to encourage them to think about the decisions they make on whether to join or not join in criminal activity.
"We know that young people join gangs for many reasons such as socialising or peer support.
"But where groups come together for criminal purposes, we will be targeting them.
"We are determined to put an end to criminal gangs on our streets."
Lewisham is a member of the Five Boroughs' Alliance on anti-gang crime, which covers Croydon, Greenwich, Lambeth, Lewisham and Southwark. [25cf] Eight males all aged between 16 and 20, from Deptford, Eltham and Forest Hill, have been charged in relation to this operation.
well done guys bobby
[Source (http://icsouthlondon.icnetwork.co.uk/0100news/0200southlondonheadlines/tm_headline=cops-crack-criminal-gang-from-inside&method=full&objectid=20085576&siteid=50100-name_page.html)]