Page 63 from: March 2012

63March 2012
M E T A L T H E F T
be the case.’ The BMRA would like to see an
increase in the number of convictions but
understands determining ownership of the
metal to be a major stumbling block.
Operation Tornado
In another anti-theft initiative, a Code of Prac-
tice was issued jointly by the BMRA and the
Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO) in
2010 in which are contained guidelines on how
to improve security and on what to do if
employees are suspicious of any criminal activ-
ity. The code develops common guidance for
local police forces and metals recyclers.
And the BMRA’s close working relationship
with the police and government on this issue
was further cemented with the unveiling in early
January 2012 of Operation Tornado – an anti-
theft trial project spearheaded by the associa-
tion, ACPO, the Home Office, the British Trans-
port Police, and the police forces of
Northumbria, Durham and Cleveland in north-
east England. Aimed at making it easier to trace
sellers of stolen metal through an identification
scheme, Mr Hetherington said at the launch that
he regarded the measures being trialled as ‘sen-
sible’ and providing ‘the basis for a reform of the
Scrap Metal Dealers Act – which we all want’.
Option to extend trial
Under the scheme, parties selling scrap metal
to participating dealers in the Northumbria,
Durham and Cleveland regions will be required
to provide proof of identity by producing either
a photo card driving licence (including an
address), or a passport or national ID card sup-
ported with a utility bill, which must be under
three months old and which must, again, show
their address.
‘This will remain in place for six months ini-
tially with the option to extend the term of the
trial as it progresses,’ notes ACPO spokesman
Chief Inspector Robin Edwards. ‘It has been
designed not to inhibit those dealers that operate
legitimate businesses, but to deter thieves and
cut crime.’ A series of raids took place on January
18 to crack down on scrap metal dealers sus-
pected of receiving stolen metal; these targeted
10 dealers who, it was claimed, had failed volun-
tarily to co-operate with Operation Tornado.
‘Coherent action’
Speaking to Recycling International just over a
month into Operation Tornado, Mr Hether-
ington said it had led to ‘coherent action, good
intelligence and has put forces on the ground
in large numbers’. There had been some arrests
‘and we hope they will convert them (into con-
victions)’, he added.
However, he also underlined that ‘a lot of work
needs to be done’ when it comes to evaluating
the success of the trial. For example, there needs
to be an analysis, he believes, of the extent to
which less material is being offered to sites par-
ticipating in Operation Tornado. If so, ‘we need
to look at where that business is going – we need
to look at neighbouring areas’, he insists, adding
that any initiative of this type ‘will drive sellers
elsewhere’. There is also a distinct possibility,
he adds, that some sellers ‘may be hanging on
to their material until Tornado ends’.
Overall, Mr Hetherington perceives ‘a substantial
reduction in metals theft in parts of the country
where there is coherent enforcement – it’s
becoming too hot to handle’. He puts the accent
on coherence, describing the proliferation of
anti-theft initiatives across the UK as ‘very con-
fusing – especially for people operating yards in
multiple areas’. The BMRA is calling for ‘greater
consistency in police activity – a single, national
approach which recognises that although theft
is a local issue, the disposal of stolen metal can
take place anywhere in the country’.
The ‘Met’ takes thieves
to task
The world-famous Metropolitan Police Ser-
vice (more generally known as the ‘Met’),
the largest of the police services that operate
in Greater London, launched a dedicated
unit to tackle metal theft late last year. The
multi-agency Waste and Metal Theft Task-
force includes experts from the telecom-
munications industry and local authority
environmental crime officers.
In emphasising that the initiative is designed
to tackle an increasingly serious issue, the
Met points out that copper is not the only
sought-after metal in which thieves are trad-
ing. ‘Rising numbers of catalytic converters
are being stolen from vehicles due to the
lucrative platinum they contain,’ it states.
The number of incidents is expected to
increase following the introduction of more
stringent Low Emission Zone emissions
standards from the start of this year.
The Met also states that the highest number
of individuals caught up in a single cable
theft saw 94 000 people lose their power
supply for several days in an incident which
cost a total of around £29 million (US$ 43.5
million).
The highest number of individuals caught up in a single cable
theft saw 94 000 people lose their power supply for several days.
Ian Hetherington, Director General of the British Metals Recy-
cling Association.
The team behind Operation Tornado with, at the front, the
BMRA’s Ian Hetherington (right) and Lord Henley, the Home
Office Minister for Crime Prevention and Anti-Social Behaviour
Reduction.
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