Police hire private security firm to stop children terrorising residents
Businesses in Herne Bay, Kent, say groups of children have been stealing from shops, shouting abuse and using catapults against animals in the park.
Akon Security has been given an £8,500 contract, funded by the Kent Police and Crime Commissioner's office, to help council enforcement officers crack down on antisocial behaviour.
Two security guards will work five days a week to patrol the streets, while police increase their presence on Fridays and Saturdays.
Akon workers cannot arrest anyone, but will act as a deterrent, assisting officers and reporting crimes straight to police.
Heena Thakkar, 49, who owns a corner shop on the high street, said the children had been terrorising her for years – but that things were starting to improve with the new patrols.
She said: 'We have had problems with them but with the new patrols it has gotten a lot better. They come to check on my shop at least two times a day.
'We had kids coming in a little gang, and they are only about eight or 10 years old. They would always steal stuff.
'They would also throw eggs and fruit at our doors. They were always lobbing trolleys at the windows. This was going on for four months, then they started killing ducks in the park.'
A charity shop worker, who wished not to be named, said: 'If anyone ever leaves donations when we are closed, then the bags are destroyed and stink of urine.
'Theft has gone up loads even though we have cameras. These kids don't care that we have them. They steal about 50 items a month, which is a few hundred pounds of revenue.
'Most of our volunteers are old or vulnerable so even if they see something there isn't a lot that they can do.'
Kamal Virdi, 59, who runs a vape shop in the high street, said: 'There is a group of around four or five kids that come up here on their e-scooters. I have thrown them out of the shop a few times.
'They are loud, and they come in the shops to try and steal stuff about two or three times a week.
'There are a lot of elderly people being terrorised by yobs. But there isn't anything that they can do.'
The Kent Police and Crime Commissioner's office has funded the project, which will help the work of Kent Police, Kent county council (KCC) wardens and city council enforcement teams.
A commissioner spokesman said that as part of the KCC budget for 'crime reduction grants', Canterbury's County Community Safety Partnership (CSP) was given an additional £8,500 so they can 'respond to seasonal ASB in the coastal area of Herne Bay'.
Chief Insp Paul Stoner, the district commander in nearby Canterbury, said: 'Being visible is the bedrock of Kent Police's neighbourhood policing model, with community-focused beat teams as well as officers working with licensed premises dedicated to keep the town and surrounding areas safe and enjoyable for all.
'Partnership working with other agencies including Canterbury city council is well-established and any initiative introduced by a partner organisation aimed at making an area safer will be supported appropriately.'
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BBC News
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The Kent mayor who was instrumental in beheading a king
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Telegraph
an hour ago
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Reform's crime tsar Colin Sutton: ‘I'll never forgive the Tories for what they did to policing'
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Closures took that firgure down to 37, and this week the Met announced plans for further cuts to just 20 Having turned his back on the Tories, and with no confidence in Sir Keir Starmer's chances of doing better, he joined Reform UK in May last year after bumping into the local parliamentary candidate and deciding he was saying all the right things about 'the sort of reset that I think is necessary'. Having volunteered to be deputy chairman of his local Reform branch (because 'nobody was sticking their hand up') it was only a matter of time before Farage latched on to the gift that had landed in his lap. Sutton was unveiled as Reform's new crime tsar in July at one of Farage's weekly press conferences, when Sutton marvelled at Farage's communication skills. 'The man's command of facts, the way in which he uses them, it's just amazing. And I thought I could talk! Then you look at others, you watch [Prime Minister's] Questions and look at the scripted questions and the scripted answers. Keir Starmer looks like a startled rabbit in the headlights. He's just not got that kind of ability, that kind of brain that works that way.' Sutton knows leadership when he sees it, and he certainly doesn't see it in Sir Keir. 'I think leadership is what I did best when I was in the police. People think I'm a great detective. In truth I had great detectives working for me, but I got the best out of them.' Leadership, he says, is key to getting the most out of the resources available to the police. Some chief constables have promised a return to investigating every burglary, a policy Sutton believes should be adopted nationwide, as burglary is 'one of the most invasive and destructive and horrifying' crimes there is. 'There are probably enough people there and enough vehicles' to do that, he says. 'What's missing is the leadership and the will to say you will go to every burglary, and you will not worry if someone's been offended or misgendered on Twitter.' 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Sky News
4 hours ago
- Sky News
'We will send you packing': Govt vows to deport foreign criminals immediately after sentencing
Foreign criminals will be deported from the UK immediately after they are sentenced, the justice secretary has said. The law change proposed by Shabana Mahmood could save taxpayers an average of £54,000 a year per prison place. The changes would apply to prisoners serving fixed-term "determinate" sentences. 12:16 Authorities would also retain their power not to deport a criminal but instead keep them in custody - with examples including if an offender is planning further crimes against the UK's interests or national security. The justice secretary's announcement goes further than a change to the law in June - expected to come into force in September - meaning prisoners face deportation 30% into their sentence rather than the current 50%. The government will need parliament to greenlight its proposal to bring this down to 0%. Foreign national offenders make up around 12% of the prison population. 0:51 Ms Mahmood said: "Our message is clear - if you abuse our hospitality and break our laws, we will send you packing." She added: "Deportations are up under this government, and with this new law they will happen earlier than ever before." Almost 5,200 foreign national offenders have been deported since July 2024, a 14% increase on the 12 months prior, according to the government. According to a Labour source, the previous Conservative government relied on prison transfer agreements with other countries to deport foreign national offenders, in deals which allow inmates to serve their custodial sentence in their "home" country. This saw 945 prisoners sent to jails abroad between 2010 and 2023, equal to fewer than two criminals per week. 11:15 Conservative shadow justice secretary Robert Jenrick said: "In Starmer's topsy-turvy world, investors are fleeing the country in their droves while record numbers of violent and sexual offenders from abroad are put up in our prisons. It's a farce. "Yet again Starmer has refused to confront our broken human rights laws. "He needs to grow a backbone and change them so we can actually deport these individuals. "The safety of the British public is infinitely more important than the 'rights' of sick foreign criminals. "If countries won't take back their nationals, Starmer should suspend visas and foreign aid. His soft-touch approach isn't working."
