Rural Crime
While a beautiful and safe place to live, the geography of Dumfries and Galloway does make it vulnerable to crimes being committed in remote rural locations. With wide expanses of countryside and agricultural areas, the less desirable elements in society see this as an ideal environment to commit crimes in the hope they will not be detected.
Rural crime can cover many differing aspects but some of the main targets include the theft of scrap metal which has been left stored. Criminals have also been known to enter unoccupied houses or business premises and strip copper and lead which have very high resale values. The ever increasing price of fuel and heating oil also make it a very attractive target for thieves with unprotected tanks located at houses in the country, lorries parked up in remote locations and forestry operations all being common targets.
Farms are also seen as a favoured location with unsecured quad bikes and tools being targeted on a regular basis. Farm land, particularly during the hours of darkness, also provide a natural attraction for wildlife crime with badger baiting, hare coursing and deer stalking being relatively common activities.
Protecting your property
While the police do a lot of preventative work which remains unseen and there is a high success rate in catching offenders, the public hold the key to making it increasingly difficult for rural thieves to go about their business.
- Make sure sheds and outbuildings are properly secured.
- Don't leave anything of value, including scrap metal, where it is clearly visible to any passing motorist.
- Consider property marking anything of particular value.
- Ensure heating oil tanks are secured and if possible covered by an alarm or security light.
- If possible ensure trailers, caravans and quad bikes have suitable security devices.
- Don't assume all people touting for scrap metal are genuine business people. Some simply use this as a cover to turn up at houses and farms to see what they can steal at a later date. Scrap metal dealers require a Civic Government (Scotland) Licence issued by the Council to lawfully go about their business – ask to see their licence before agreeing to give up scrap metal.
- Don't assume because you live in a remote rural location keys can be left in quad bikes or other vehicles. Always remove keys and as far as possible lock quad bikes away out of sight.
- If you see anything suspicious in a rural area take as much detail as you can remember, particularly in respect of the people involved and their vehicles. Type of vehicles and registration numbers are important pieces of information.
- Telephone the police when you see anything suspicious happening - don't wait. We would much rather deal with a false alarm with good intent than risk losing the opportunity to catch the criminal in action.
