CT Policing marks neighbourhood policing week of action

Head of Counter Terrorism Policing, Matt Jukes, has marked Neighbourhood Policing Week of Action by recognising the role neighbourhood officers play in maintaining the local to global reach of counter terrorism policing.

Jukes said: "Every day neighbourhood policing teams live and breathe their communities, building relationships, looking for opportunities to prevent crime and to intervene as early as possible when things seem to be going down a dangerous path.

"When it comes to countering terrorism, this means identifying those at risk of radicalisation, individuals who may be engaging in hateful extremism, people who are perhaps sharing such views, or grooming others into their way of thinking, or inciting violence to further toxic ideologies.

"Our neighbourhood officers work, and sometimes live, in the spaces where this happens, they know when things don’t seem right, and they are trusted by local people. Add in their professionalism, training and expertise and they know exactly when and how to take action."

Jukes pointed out that many investigations begin with evidence collected by frontline officers in their community, including an investigation into National Action last year, which begun when a neighbourhood police officer investigated stickering at a university campus. He also mentioned a local policing team raising concerns with Counter Terrorism Policing after finding worrying drawings and propaganda at an address linked to a burglary suspect.

Jukes said: "We are truly collaborative. Our network stretches across the UK, with regional Counter Terrorism Units working around the clock to keep people safe. We have officers, staff and investigators embedded in every police force, where they work alongside local policing counterparts, sharing intelligence, ideas and investigations.

"Almost 40 late-stage terror plots have been disrupted in the last five years, and we are currently working on over 800 live investigations.

"This wouldn’t have been possible without the professionalism and support of our neighbourhood policing colleagues, together with our partners.

"We say that every police officer is a counter terrorism officer. Our neighbourhood policing colleagues are the embodiment of this, making a significant contribution to the local to global reach we value so highly to help us counter a threat that knows no borders."

Image by dagmarbendel from Pixabay