Text alert leads to arrest of suspected thieves

A rural crime alert was sent to residents about a white van seen in the Brassington area which was believed to have been involved in the theft of a quantity of lead from a farm.

Following the appeal, members of the public came forward with information confirming the identity of van and descriptions of the suspected offenders. Police arrested two suspects within minutes of the message going out.

Derbyshire Police and Crime Commissioner Hardyal Dhindsa was responsible for reinstating the alert messaging system after his election last year.

He said: “This latest success shows how important the Derbyshire Alert system is to gather intelligence and ultimately detect crime.

“I would like to thank the public for their continuing response to the information appeals we issue. Thousands of people have registered with the site since the end of September and the facility is already proving its weight in gold as a crime prevention service.”

People can sign up to the Alert system at www.derbyshirealert.co.uk