Project Servator patrols launched in Guildford to deter crime and terrorism
Surrey Police is deploying specialised Project Servator patrols in Guildford for the first time. Uniformed officers, police dogs and plain-clothes operatives will operate across the town centre.
Surrey Police launches covert and uniformed patrols in Guildford town centre
Surrey Police is deploying specialised patrols in Guildford for the first time, bbc.co.uk reports, as part of a nationally recognised crime-deterrence programme called Project Servator.
The initiative combines highly visible uniformed officers and police dogs with plain-clothes operatives who are harder to spot. Teams will appear at unpredictable times across Guildford town centre, aiming to deter criminals and reassure the public.
Project Servator has already been adopted by several UK police forces, where it has led to multiple arrests and contributed to the removal of illegal firearms, knives and drugs from the streets.
Chief Superintendent Graham Barnett said the scheme was "about keeping people safe and ensuring Surrey remains a hostile environment for those looking to commit crime."
Officers involved in the programme receive specialist training to identify tell-tale signs that a person may be surveilling a location ahead of committing a crime or planning a terrorist attack. The approach also depends on "building a network of vigilance made up of businesses, community partners and the public," according to a force spokesperson.
Barnett added that officers would be engaging directly with residents and local businesses, explaining the purpose of Project Servator and encouraging people to report anything that appears unusual or out of place.
He stressed there is "no intelligence to suggest any increased threat to Guildford or Surrey," and that the visible police presence was "no cause for concern."
Source: Google News UK — Crime (en)