Arrested – 179 offenders who thought they could evade justice

A TEENAGE girl from Warrington was one of 179 people arrested by Cheshire Police in an operation to clamp down on people who thought they could evade justice.
Operation Cleansweep was a week-long initiative to target offenders who had failed to appear at court, were wanted on warrant or who were named suspects in criminal investigations.
Teams of officers were involved in the operation.
Superintendent Peter Crowcroft, head of criminal justice and custody, said: “This was a planned operation to sweep up offenders who thought that they could ignore the police and the courts.
“This week they have learned that this is not the case and that police are determined to make offenders feel the consequences of their actions.”
Among those apprehended were 26 people wanted on the Police National Computer for offences such as assault, fraud, burglary and rape.
Thirty five people who had failed to appear at court to answer charges, were collared and put before the next available court and seven others who had failed to pay fines were also picked up by police.
More than 100 were people who were named suspects in live police investigations.
Supt Crowcroft explained: “These are people who have been directly linked to crimes by witnesses, forensic evidence or information from local communities. Thanks to this initiative, many victims of crime are going to get good news that we have made real progress in detecting their crime.”
The youngest offender arrested during the initiative was 15 – a girl from Warrington wanted in connection with an assault – and the oldest was a 64 year-old man from Warrington, who police wanted to talk to about allegations of sexual assault.
As part of “Operation Cleansweep”, police also sent letters to the families and associates of wanted offenders, reminding them that harbouring fugitives was an offence and urging their co-operation in bringing people to justice. As a result, a number of wanted people handed themselves in immediately because they realised that the police were on their trail.
“Cheshire Police makes around 300 arrests each week for crimes as they arise; by adding an additional 179 arrests under Cleansweep, it meant that our custody teams were working at full capacity”, Supt Crowcroft said: “They were responding to the great work that teams of Neighbourhood, CID, undercover and intelligence officers had put in to track down people who thought they had disappeared under the radar.
“Operation Cleansweep has had a real impact on communities by targeting offenders who believe they could escape justice and sending the clear message that Cheshire Police will put every possible effort into tracking people down when offences are committed or when people don’t co-operate with the justice system. We will continue operations such as these whenever they are needed in order to ensure that Cheshire continues to be a safe place to live, work and visit.”
Northern area commander Chief Supt Sarah Boycott said: “I would like to thank people in the Halton and Warrington communities who have provided the information that has allowed us to target so many offenders. My officers have worked extremely hard to action the intelligence you provided and as a result, our cells have been full and we have made real progress in some key criminal investigations”