Three people were arrested, more than 30 infringements issued and three knives seized in a day-long operation aimed at boosting safety in Preston’s central business district.
More than 50 officers from the Mill Park Divisional Response Unit, local uniform police, Public Order Response Team, transit police and PSOs on Thursday July 6 saturated Preston’s shopping precinct and bus interchanges as part of Operation Archangel.
A designated area was declared, empowering officers to stop and search anyone suspected of carrying an illegal weapon in a strong message such behaviour will not be tolerated.
Three men were arrested – two for outstanding warrants and one for drug possession.
The three knives seized comprised a flick knife and two pocket knives.
Of the three people allegedly carrying weapons, one person received a fine, one was issued with a warning and another was released and is expected to be charged on summons for carrying the flick knife.
Other key results show officers:
• Issued 32 infringement notices for traffic and weapon offences;
• Conducted 90 searches;
• Checked 149 cars;
• Spoke with 121 people; and
• Referred two people to relevant support services.
Police will continue to run targeted operations in the Preston area based on intelligence with the aim to deter crime, stamp out anti-social activity and apprehend offenders.
Mill Park Divisional Response Unit, Sergeant Daniel Bonnici, said: “This highly visible presence is about boosting safety in Preston’s shopping precincts and public transport network.
“In an ideal world, we would never have to run these operations, but the reality is a small number of people do choose to carry weapons – we simply won’t tolerate weapons on the streets.
“We’ll continue to run targeted operations using our local and specialist resources to keep the community safe,” Sgt Bonnici said.