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Deputy editor backs tougher sentences after being hit by van theft

julie-crouchA regional daily deputy editor has backed a campaign to get tougher sentences imposed on tool thieves.

Julie Crouch, of the Burton Mail, has backed a petition which is calling for tougher penalties for people who break into workmen’s vans.

Julie, left, backed the bid after she became a victim of the crime when her fiancee’s van was targeted at her Derbyshire home, with thousands of pounds worth of tools stolen.

A specialist police task-force has been set up in Derbyshire to help crack down on crimes of this nature, after a spate of similar thefts in Burton upon Trent and South Derbyshire.

Said Julie: “I think these criminals need to face the full force of the law, because this is a serious crime with devastating consequences.

“For some people, their whole livelihood is in the back of their van, and a theft like this can leave them unable to work. I’m glad the police are doing everything they can, and have set up a specialist task force to stamp out the scourge.”

Campaign organiser Mark Riley hopes to present the petition to Prime Minister Theresa May.

He said: “A tradesman’s tools are his livelihood – he isn’t always in the position to empty his van and lock them away. There are organised gangs traveling the length of the country helping themselves to thousands of pounds worth of tools by peeling open the doors of hard-working tradesmen and helping themselves to his tools.

“The punishment needs to meet the severity of the crime. A ban on insurance increases to victims of van crime should be put in place, and emergency low or interest-free government loans should be put in place to help relieve the burden to the innocent victims of this type of crime.”

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  • January 11, 2017 at 10:48 am
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    I hate to sound unsympathetic but don’t the police always warn motorists never to leave valuables in their vehicles, in particular tools left in vans.
    And I’d be very wary of personal involvement influencing what goes in the paper.

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  • January 11, 2017 at 5:46 pm
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    This was expressed in an opinion column alongside a piece about a spate of thefts from vans.

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