Latest news with #crimePrevention
Yahoo
a day ago
- Yahoo
Columbus targeting specific areas for crime, beautification
COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) — Columbus leaders are sharing the results of the city's Clean and Safe Corridor Initiative, which city departments use to clean up key commercial areas in terms of crime and beautification. 'We're doing everything we can to make sure that, from a visibility standpoint, street lights, you know, trimming of trees and making sure that the streets are walkable and safe are critically important, so the whole effort around this corridor initiative is having all the city departments be part of this, so you've got public service, public utilities, recreation, and arts development,' Columbus Mayor Andrew Ginther said. Village responds to 'speed trap' accusations from Columbus The city has already invested more than $500,000 in the Clean and Safe Corridor initiative. Ginther is proposing another $5 million investment into safety-enhancing technology. That would go in the four areas the city identified as key commercial corridors for this initiative. They started with Parsons Avenue, then Sullivant Avenue, and then Livingston Avenue. The most recent blitz was on High Street in the Short North. 'We're able to have the right resources at the right place in the right time of need, and we're really fortunate that we've had a safe summer in the Short North and we haven't had to enact things so visibly, but know that that work is ongoing,' Short North Alliance Executive Director Betsy Pandora said. Columbus officials said the Clean and Safe Corridor Initiative was a success in the four areas. As far as safety, results attributed to the program include: 46 on view felony arrests 15 firearms recovered 115 vehicles impounded 393 vehicle citations 248 '311' complaints worked 286 small businesses canvased 8 fire hydrants repaired As far as cleanliness and beautification, the initiative resulted in: 54.56 tons of litter and bulk trash collected 368 new street signs installed 67 street lights replaced with led 498 trees serviced 370.5 man-hours of pothole repairing 999 parcels inspected 61 fire hydrants painted 257 stormwater catch basins and inlets cleaned Ginther hopes his proposed multi-million-dollar investment will be the cherry on top of this work. 'Five million dollars in capital investments, in lighting, cameras, license plate readers and enhancement of our 311 center so that in the future, when folks call in, whether they're business owner or shopper or resident, there's faster and more efficient and more effective response to that call for service whether it's a streetlight that's out, a trash can that's been overrun, we can respond faster in the future,' he said. Ohio updates law on golf carts and slow-moving vehicles City leaders said that though homicides are at a 15-year low year-to-date in Columbus, there's still more work to be done in all of these corridors. Pandora said that in the Short North, there is always more work in building relationships that needs to be done, given the nature of the area. 'I think an ongoing day-to-day presence that is relationship driven, that at times is enforcement driven, you know, when you have really big volumes of visitors in the community, there's a different approach that needs to be taken to those moments, but the day-to-day moments matter, too, and I think that having enhanced teams that are out during very visited times, along with teams that are present here and have forged relationships with the community, is probably what we hear most from constituents here in the Short North,' Pandora said. Ginther said in the Short North, officials want to focus on the hours between 8 p.m. to 2 a.m. because that's when it tends to be the busiest. Ginther said City Council will vote on this investment at its meeting on Monday. If approved, he hopes people will start to see these enhancements in the next six to 12 months. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
CTV News
a day ago
- Automotive
- CTV News
CTV National News: Awareness bringing new tactics by Canada's car thieves
CTV National News: Awareness bringing new tactics by Canada's car thieves Experts say car thieves are employing new tactics as awareness and enforcement has resulted in a drop in auto thefts in 2025. John Vennavally-Rao reports.
CTV News
2 days ago
- Automotive
- CTV News
Auto theft sees sharp drop in first half of 2025, industry association says
Équité Association reports auto thefts are down 19.1 per cent year over year in the first half of 2025. Shipping containers are moved in the Port of Montreal, Monday, Sept. 30, 2024. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Christinne Muschi OTTAWA — The pace of auto theft is dropping in Canada thanks to collective efforts to crack down on thieves, says an industry group focused on insurance fraud and crime. Équité Association said in a report released Monday that the number of vehicles reported stolen nationally dropped 19.1 per cent in the first half of 2025 compared to the same period in 2024. Just over 23,000 vehicles were reported stolen in the first six months of the year in Canada, the report said. The decline is particularly stark in Ontario and Quebec, which saw annual drops of 25.9 per cent and 22.2 per cent, respectively. The year-over-year drops are more modest in Atlantic Canada and Western Canada at roughly nine per cent. Alberta saw a decline of 12.5 per cent. Bryan Gast, national vice-president of investigative services at Équité Association, credits greater public awareness of the threat and efforts by various levels of government and law enforcement agencies to collectively tackle the problem. 'It's really definitely a collaborative effort,' he said. Gast said law enforcement agencies in Ontario and Quebec in particular have stepped up enforcement with police units dedicated to vehicle theft. So far this year, residents of Ontario and Quebec have reported 9,600 and 3,889 vehicle thefts respectively — high numbers that Gast attributed to the provinces' larger populations and proximity to the Port of Montreal. With 4,411 vehicles reported stolen over the first half of 2025, Gast said Alberta continues to lead the country in auto theft on a per-capita basis. Statistics Canada data released earlier this week confirms national progress on the file. The agency reported a 17 per cent annual drop in the rate of police-reported motor vehicle thefts, down to 239 incidents per 100,000 people last year. In 2023, the number of auto thefts had increased 40 per cent over the historic low recorded in 2020, StatCan said. That trend came to a head last year when the federal government convened a summit in February to address car thefts. Ottawa followed up by giving the Canada Border Services Agency millions of dollars in new funding to track vehicles leaving through the country's ports, after having given Ontario $121 million in January of that year to tackle gang crime and auto thefts. Gast said some of the progress can likely be attributed to Canadians' heightened awareness of the issue. 'Now I think you can talk to anybody and, if their car hasn't been stolen, they know somebody's car that has been stolen,' he said. 'I think they are taking those precautions and some of those steps to make their vehicle less of a target.' Vehicle recovery rates also rose 3.4 percentage points year over year to 56.5 per cent in the first half of 2025, Équité Association said. The organization said that was nearing the 'pre-crisis' level of 57.2 per cent recorded in 2021. Despite progress on vehicle theft, the Insurance Bureau of Canada warned it's still a 'significant concern' and 'far from the only factor contributing to rising auto insurance costs.' 'A combination of inflation, tariffs, rising repair and vehicle replacement costs, legal pressures, and regulatory challenges are driving rates up across the country,' the bureau said in a media statement. Tariffs on vehicle parts are driving up the costs of repairs and replacement cars, the bureau noted. Gast said that while it's not clear yet, tariffs might be playing a role in the increase Équité Association is seeing in domestic chop shops and vehicle parts being sent overseas. He said that whenever there's a disruption to supply chains — like the one that made semiconductor inputs a hot commodity during the COVID-19 pandemic — the criminal element tends to adapt to meet that demand. While he's encouraged by the progress Canada has posted to date in tamping down auto theft, he said now is not the time to let up. 'Don't consider the problem solved,' he said. 'To keep it manageable and the numbers trending in the right direction, I think we still need to focus on it.' This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 28, 2025. Craig Lord, The Canadian Press
BBC News
17-07-2025
- BBC News
Dog detectives learn how to sniff out knives in Plymouth
An American university and dog trainers in Plymouth are researching how dogs could help police find knives used to commit dogs involved in the research project do not detect the knives themselves but a chemical compound created by the blades when they make contact with human smell of a knife in contact with human skin has been synthesised into a liquid form at Texas Tech University and the dog trainers use that to train the dogs, said trainer Brian Mence.A spokesperson for Devon and Cornwall Police said although they are not yet using dogs to detect knives, "we are aware of the training and capabilities of using search dogs to tackle knife crime". The process of getting the dogs to recognise the smell is similar to other working sniffer trainer Brian Mence explained it is a bit like handling coins or drinking out of a metal can. Although dogs are not currently being used by police forces in the UK for finding knives, lead trainer Andy Lightfoot believes there are several advantages to using dogs for this purpose."They're mobile, they're flexible, we can jump from one access point to the next, and they are non-invasive making the whole search process a lot quicker," he a metal-detecting arch, which will alert to any metal item, the dogs only react when there is a blade, he added. "It's building the association with the odour for a reward - in most cases that is giving them their favourite toy."Once they have that, they can search bags, coats, and then we can build up to searching people." A Home Office spokesperson said: "We remain steadfast in our mission to halve knife crime over a decade. "That's why we are bringing in new laws to stop knives from being sold illegally online, have banned zombie style knives and machetes, and are putting more neighbourhood police officers on the streets to make our communities safer while driving the development of innovative knife detection technologies."
Sky News
04-07-2025
- Sky News
Met Police release footage as more than 1,000 arrests made using live facial recognition technology
More than 1,000 criminals, including a paedophile found with a six-year-old girl, have been arrested by the Metropolitan Police using live facial recognition (LFR) cameras. David Cheneler, 73, was among 93 registered sex offenders held by Met officers using the controversial technology since the start of last year. He was discovered with the girl after he was identified by a camera on a police van in Camberwell, south London, in January. Cheneler, from Lewisham, was jailed for two years in May after admitting breaching his sexual harm prevention order by being with a child under the age of 14. The Met said a total of 1,035 arrests have been made using live facial recognition technology - where live footage is recorded of people as they walk past, capturing their faces, which are then compared against a database of wanted offenders. If a match is determined, the system creates an alert which is assessed by an officer, who may decide to speak to the person. They include more than 100 people alleged to have been involved in serious violence against women and girls (VAWG) offences such as strangulation, stalking, domestic abuse, and rape. Image: Adenola Akindutire admitted charges including robbery. Pic: Met Police Adenola Akindutire was stopped during an operation in Stratford and arrested over the machete robbery of a Rolex watch, which left the victim with life-changing injuries after the attack in Hayes, west London. Police said the 22-year-old, who was linked to a similar incident and had been released on bail, was in possession of a false passport and could have evaded arrest if it wasn't for the technology. Akindutire, of no fixed address, admitted charges including robbery, attempted robbery, grievous bodily harm, possession of a false identity document and two counts of possession of a bladed article and faces sentencing at Isleworth Crown Court. Image: Darren Dubarry was stopped on his bike. Pic: Met Police Image: Dubarry was caught with stolen designer clothes. Pic: Met Police Darren Dubarry, 50, was already wanted for theft when he was caught with stolen designer clothing in Dalston, east London, after riding past an LFR camera on his bike. The 50-year-old, from Stratford, east London, was fined after pleading guilty to handling stolen goods. Lindsey Chiswick, the Met's LFR lead, hailed the 1,000 arrest milestone as "a demonstration of how cutting-edge technology can make London safer by removing dangerous offenders from our streets". "Live Facial Recognition is a powerful tool, which is helping us deliver justice for victims, including those who have been subjected to horrendous offences, such as rape and serious assault," she said. "It is not only saving our officers' valuable time but delivering faster, more accurate results to catch criminals - helping us be more efficient than ever before." The Met say "robust safeguards" are in place, which ensure no biometric data is retained from anyone who walks past an LFR camera who isn't wanted by police. Almost 2 million faces scanned But human rights group Liberty is calling for new laws to be introduced to govern how police forces use the technology after Liberty Investigates found almost 1.9 million faces were scanned by the Met between January 2022 and March this year. Read more from Sky News: Leaseholders to get stronger rights, powers and protections PM told to 'use Rayner - people like her' Charlie Whelton, Liberty policy and campaigns officer, said: "We all want to feel safe in our communities, but technology is advancing quickly, and we need to make sure that our laws keep up. "Any tech which has the potential to infringe on our rights in the way scanning and identifying millions of people does needs to have robust safeguards around its use to protect us all from abuse of power as we go about our daily lives. "There is currently no overarching law governing police use of facial recognition in the UK, and we shouldn't leave police forces to come up with these frameworks on their own. "Almost two million faces have been scanned in London before Parliament has even decided what the laws should be. "We need to catch up with other countries, and the law needs to catch up with the use. Parliament must legislate now and ensure that safeguards are in place to protect people's rights where the police use this technology."
