The Times reports that the Police are struggling to control crime, even within their own stations. If criminals are willing to commit crime right in face of the criminal justice system, do we really think they take the law seriously elsewhere?
"Figures obtained by The Times under the Freedom of Information Act reveal that petty criminals view the police station or the patrol car as more of a temptation than a deterrent. More than £1 million of police property, including sat-navs, stab vests, breath-test kits and helmets have been stolen since 2005.
Although many of the missing items are rich pickings for fraudsters looking to make a quick profit, some will cause particular embarrassment to their former owners. In Warwickshire a thief with a sense of humour stole a police Codes of Practice book, while officers in Nottinghamshire were left bemused when a poster showing details of an ASBO order was stolen. Quite how a roof went missing under the noses of Scotland Yard is hard to fathom, as is the theft of bricks from the outside wall of a station in Derbyshire.
Wiltshire Police were puzzled when a £40,000 motor home vanished, as were Dorset officers when a thief lacking in charity lifted the police benevolent fund box. Kent Police were left scratching their heads when a shrubbery was spirited away from a station in Dartford, and officers in Lancashire began an investigation when thieves purloined two dogs.
No item was too small or insignificant to list as stolen. Greater Manchester police recorded the theft of £2.58 worth of meat, Humberside noted an absent carrier bag, and Avon & Somerset officers duly noted that some pain-killing tablets had gone astray. In Norfolk, a blood sample was stolen from a police car. Officers across the country had countless packets of cigarettes stolen."