crime | Westminster World

Dec122022 by Vishalakshi Verma No Comments

Beware of “porch pirates” this festive season!

Breaking News, crime, crime, Harrow, UK news

The growing trend of theft of parcels left unattended by delivery drivers raises the question of security in the UK As we get closer to Christmas, postal workers are expected to go on strike. In preparation for Christmas, many people are switching to Amazon and other e-commerce shops due to these impending strikes. If people are not at home, packages can be left on doorsteps to wait for pickup by purchasers, which if left alone for too long, facilitates attempting to steal. From 2021 to 2022, an estimated 10,485 packages were stolen. In the UK, parcel theft is becoming a bigger problem. "porch pirates" are a major issue in the US, where they follow delivery trucks around neighbourhoods and steal packages, as per Ian Caminsky, SVP & MD parcel locker solutions UKI and DACHIT, Q...

Why are drug gangs hiding behind students?

Breaking News, crime, crime, Education, Explainers, London, Media, News, UK news, youth

A recent article published by the Times, talks about how county line drug gangs are infiltrating universities as a convenient spot to carry out their operations. But why have these drug gangs targeted universities? Let’s find out. Picture Credit: The Statesmen What does County lines mean? County lines are organised illegal drug-dealing networks that are usually controlled by a single person. Drug dealers set up a network between city and county locations to supply drugs controlling a network of runners by mobile phones, also known as ‘deal lines’. The line is controlled by an anonymous dealer based in a city who has complete control over what is sold. These drug runners use vulnerable people's homes as a base for dealing, a practice known as cuckooing. Young re

Legalisation and better mental health services can reduce drug-related crimes

Breaking News, crime, crime, Politics, UK news

The government announced a 10-year drug strategy for tackling drug-related crimes in England and Wales last Monday. As a part of this strategy, Class A drug users could face losing their passports and driving licences as Boris Johnson said he will be “coming down tough on lifestyle drug users”. Image Credits: https://www.ardurecoverycenter.com/2020/09/drugs-types-of-illegal-drugs/ The Home Office revealed data saying that 300,000 drug addicts contribute to nearly half of burglaries, robberies and shoplifting along with nearly half of all homicides in England, costing the country nearly £20bn each year. What is the new strategy? Here are the four policies the government proposes: Crackdown on Drug gangs: As a part of the county lines operation, the government will allot £

Now is the time to legalise pepper spray to protect women in the capital

Breaking News, crime, Education, Gender, Law, London, News, UK news, Women

In the UK, it is illegal to carry pepper spray as a self-defense weapon. At Westminster World, we think this needs to change. Photo Credit: The Canterbury Hub Back in 2010, Theresa May MP, former Home Secretary said: “No woman should live in fear of violence.” However, eleven years later nothing seems to have changed. Violence against women has been an ongoing topic for many years within the United Kingdom, and in 2021, the issue grew more prominent. Recent statistics found that only 24 per cent of women feel safe walking alone after dark. It is predicted that 1 in 4 women will experience domestic abuse in this country, and 1 in 5 women will experience sexual assault during their lifetime. With the murders of Sarah Everard, Sabina Nessa and Bobbi-Ann McLeod it has made it

Don’t be a dick: Campaign launched on cyber flashing

Breaking News, crime, Explainers, London, Media, Social media

Bumble, one of UK’s biggest dating apps, has started a campaign to make sending unwanted graphic images or nudes a standalone crime. After a successful campaign in the US regarding cyber flashing, Bumble launched the campaign in the UK with support from UN Women UK. They plan on working with politicians, organisations and the public to call on the UK government to make it a criminal offence. WHAT IS CYBERFLASHING? According to the Law Commission's report, Cyber flashing is defined as “the sending of images or video recordings of genitals via social platforms.” In this case the victim is not the one sending the picture but the one receiving it. It has been seen that in most of the cases the victim has no idea who the sender is. A recent tool used for cyber flashing is “Air Drop

Drink Spiking Incidents on the Rise

Adults, crime, Explainers

In light of the recent drink spiking incidents, we interviewed a few people around Oxford Street in London to get their opinions on the issue. Dina and Ava, students from Paris, said that they were shocked to see that incidents like these take place so often across the city. Talking about her own experience Dina said: “I was very anxious when I went out yesterday. I kept checking my bag and who is behind me and near me and why they are near me.” They said to ensure that such incidents don’t happen bars and pubs must check everyone’s bags before letting them enter and have special cups or glasses with a lid or covering. Molly Greenslade a trainee psychologist from London whose friends were spiked said: “Incidents like these put me off from going out. I went out on Halloween and f

The effect of County Line gangs on vulnerable children

Breaking News, children, crime, crime, International, London, News, Social media, Worldnews, youth

County Line gang activities and recruitment of young children have increased across the UK during the lockdown. What are County Lines? It is a technique to transport drugs from one area to another by using the individual phone lines. The Organised Criminal Groups (OCGs) exploit innocent children and get them to sell and supply drugs. Photo credits by Pixabay There are more than 20 OCGs across the UK trafficking drugs into small towns and villages. They do this by manipulating children as young as 13, especially those with mental health or addiction issues. They are trained and groomed by the drug dealers who use them as drug mules to carry packages of heroin and cocaine on public transport. Philip Seccombe, a Police and Crime Commissioner of Warwickshire tol...

Is the UK responsible for terrorism? A reaction to Warfalli sentence

Adults, crime, Explainers, International, News, Opinion, protest, Racism, UK news

CC: Bob Harvey Gathering for the vigil for the victims of the Manchester Bombing Yahya Werfalli was sentenced to community service for his connection with the Manchester bombing. Leading up to the tragic event, Werfalli’s supplied his debit card details to the bomber’s brother, Hashem Abedi. His account was then used to purchase hydrogen peroxide, which was the main ingredient, for the bombing. Court documents reveal that this was so the purchase wouldn’t be immediately linked to the bomber, Hashem Abedi. A few days after the bombing, Werfalli was arrested in his home at gunpoint. Over the course of several police interviews, he claimed he was told the brothers were running two fraud schemes similar to something he has done in the past. He believed they were supposed

Nov302020 by Mengqi ZhangNo Comments

‘Cat-and-mouse game’ between the police and anti-lockdown protesters

Adults, Breaking News, Covid-19, crime, Explainers, London, News, protest

Anti-lockdown demonstrators “give the police quite a run around” while 155 of them were arrested. Outside King’s Cross station on 28 November, the Metropolitan police wait for their quarry — anti-lockdown demonstrators. The police are located all over the square. Photo by Mengqi Zhang Piers Corbyn, the core of the anti-lockdown group had called for “a large peaceful educational march in London” 20 days ago. In anticipation, the Met police had warned protesters to “stay at home” and that “any large gatherings in central London will be prohibited by law.” The protest was supposed to start at 12:00pm, however, a massive police deployment replaced the expected large-scale protest demonstrations. Met officers were attempting to disperse protesters amidst a man holding u

Dec92019 by Claudia DashwoodNo Comments

Londoners can now learn how to act “effectively” in terror attacks

Breaking News, crime, News, Terror

“It is never bad to be prepared for terrorism incidents.” In a bid to protect the UK from terrorism, police are encouraging the public to sign up to an online counter terrorism course. Any member of the public can become a 'CT citizen' through the ACT Awareness eLearning course, which was previously only available to those working in crowded places. The course takes about 45 minutes to complete, with only seven modules. Originally created in partnership with Marks & Spencer for their employees, the online lessons teach people how to spot potential terrorism behaviour and what to do in the event of an attack. In a statement, Deputy Assistant Commissioner Lucy D’Orsi, Senior National Coordinator for Protective Security said: “The festive period is obviously a very busy