Warning as crime wave hits village (From Wharfedale Observer)

Warning as crime wave hits village

5:39pm Sunday 29th July 2012 in News By Amanda Greaves

A low-crime area of Wharfe-dale has suffered several burglaries and thefts – five of them over the same night.

PC Alan Jacks told Adding-ham councillors last week there had been eight crimes in the village in the past month, five of them on July 9 to 10.

Among crimes reported were a house burglary, shed break-ins and the theft of a quad bike from a barn.

And Menston has suffered a “glut” of reports of damage to vehicles in recent weeks.

Police also found an assortment of property aband-oned in Addingham earlier this month. The theft of a pram left in a garden overnight was reported to police, as well as damage to a Land Rover.

Of three non-house burg-laries in Addingham, two were on the night of July 9 to 10. There have been two thefts from vehicles in the village.

PC Jacks reminded residents to remove any valuable prop-erty from their vehicles.

Addingham parish council-lor, Alan Jerome, asked if reports of Addingham being a low-crime area encouraged criminals to target the village.

But PC Jacks said it is not unknown for burglars to follow the drivers of high-value cars and burgle the property later. He advised anyone who thought they had been followed to report it to police.

Crime has remained low in Wharfedale compared to many parts of West Yorkshire.

There were just three crimes recorded in Addingham in June, 14 in Burley-in-Wharfe-dale and nine in Menston.

A total of 32 were recorded in Ilkley, including seven house burglaries and two burglaries of other properties.

Traffic-related issues remain the main policing priority, and officers are continuing with increased patrols in the Ilkley riverside area on weekends and school holidays, to prevent and reduce anti-social behaviour.