Police and Farmwatch volunteers have joined forces to recover two stolen ATVs worth £50,000 and arrest the suspected thief.
Northumbria Police were alerted on Wednesday (19 October) after the ATVs were reported stolen from a farm in the county near Morpeth.
See also: Long winter nights bring rural crime warning for farmers
Officers were deployed to the area supported by members of the Northumbria Police’s Farmwatch volunteers.
Members of the 1,300-strong Farmwatch community were able to provide information on a silver Audi which had been spotted with the stolen buggies.
Within hours, it was tracked down at a service station near Ashington and a 23-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of burglary.
Further lines of intelligence were followed up and searches uncovered one of the stolen ATVs in bushes in the Ulgham Grange area of the county.
The second buggy was located 12 hours later, also hidden in bushes. Both vehicles have since been seized and will be returned to their rightful owners.
Inspector John Swan, of Northumbria Police’s rural policing team, hailed the operation as an outstanding team effort.
“Under the banner of Operation Hawkeye, we are committed to tackling all rural crime in Northumbria to protect those who live in our more isolated communities,” said Insp Swan.
“I would like to commend our rural policing team, as well as our amazing Farmwatch volunteers who consistently go above and beyond to help protect our rural communities.”
Rural Crime Volunteers
He added that he was proud of the scheme, designed to help alert residents across Northumberland to any criminal or suspicious activity, share appeals for information and spread crime prevention advice.
The network is complemented by Rural Crime Volunteers, a team of residents who monitor the areas they know best and feed directly into Northumbria Police if they see anything that rouses suspicion.
“We are one of the only forces in the country to have Rural Crime Volunteers, and their contribution is priceless,” said Insp Swan.
The 23-year-old man arrested has been released on bail with police inquiries ongoing.
Anyone with information about the thefts is asked to contact police via the “Tell Us Something” page of the Northumbria Police website.
Alternatively, call 101, quoting crime number 124275Q/22 or email 9135@northumbria.police.uk
