A police chief has said the force will pull in resources from “across Scotland” as part of an effort to crack down on brazen car and motorcycle thieves.
Chief Inspector Murray Main said officers would not let up following a surge in acquisitive crime such as housebreaking, and also a rise in shoplifting, in the Garioch area.
It comes following a string of car and motorcycles thefts across the north-east in recent months, with Aberdeenshire properties repeatedly targeted by raiders intent of making off with vehicles.
The area commander for Aberdeenshire South was updating councillors on the latest policing figures for the region at the Garioch area committee yesterday.
Between April and September this year there were 48 housebreakings in the area, compared to 18 within the same period last year, and 73 counts of shoplifting on the 30 in 2015.
However vandalism and malicious mischief has gone down within the same time frame, to 128 from 149 incidents. Serious assaults in the Garioch have arisen from five incidents to 14.
Motor vehicle crime – which includes breaking into, stealing from and thefts of vehicles – has remained the same at 36 recorded counts.
Ch Insp Main said tackling acquisitive crime remains “a significant challenge” for the police.
He added the force has its “focus” on targeting “the perpetrators of this horrendous crime”.
“What I will say is we will not stop taking any measure required from resources across Scotland,” he said.
“Acquisitive crime is a significant issue across the north-east, particularly in Aberdeenshire South where we suffer from individuals coming into the area to commit crime, particularly crimes involving housebreakings.”
He also said officers had been repeatedly called out to incidents involving thefts from supermarkets in Inverurie and Westhill, which is being addressed through a ‘Shopwatch’ scheme.
Sexual crimes in the Garioch have also risen from 22 between April and September last year to 26 this year.
Ch Insp Main said many of these were “historical” incidents which had only recently been brought to the attention of the force.
He added: “I understand there is a perception perhaps in increasing numbers of (sexual) crimes occurring. There are a number of historical matters being reported to us now.”