Harston Beat June 2004 Issue

Mobile Tel No: 07740 734977. E-mail john.sutton@cambs.police.uk

Just the other day I was walking my dog – which my regular readers will recall we acquired as a tiny puppy last year, but now has the size and appearance of a small bear – along Grantchester Meadows near Cambridge. I say I was walking the dog; it’s more a question these days of the dog walking me! Anyway, at the entrance to the Meadows there used to be a wooden ‘kissing’ gate which had been erected a few of years ago to let the public in, but prevent the cattle getting out. I was slightly surprised to find that the entire gate and part of the fence that went with it had been removed. I initially thought it might have been taken away for some official purpose, but as I progressed along the Meadows with my furry companion I discovered the truth. On the river bank a short distance away were the charred remains of the gate and fence with innumerable beer cans, bottles and other detritus strewn in the grass around them. Presumably this was the end product of some drunken alfresco party the night before.

This was a particularly bad example of a bizarre phenomenon that I have observed over the years with growing frustration. It is the tendency of people to go out of their way to visit a beautiful place such as a stretch of river, piece of woodland or wild flower meadow and then despoil it by leaving rubbish behind or even deliberately damaging it. Why – I ask myself – do the people who behave like this go to areas of natural beauty in the first place? If sitting on a carpet of crisp packets, sandwich containers and drinks cartons doesn’t bother them, then why don’t they go and have their picnic on the local municipal rubbish tip?

It is easy to blame this type of behaviour on that flourishing breed – the common or garden yob. But the scale of the problem is just too great for us to be able to place it entirely at the feet of this particular sub species. Indeed, many people who wouldn’t dream of brawling in the street or throwing up in your front garden on the way home from the pub, think nothing of scattering chocolate wrappers on a coastal foot path or discarding drinks containers in a nature reserve.

Only last summer we visited the Giant’s Causeway in Northern Ireland. For those of you who are not familiar with it, this is an area of astonishing hexagonal shaped basalt columns that rise out of the sea like the remains of a vast ancient temple. It has been formed entirely by natural forces and has quite rightly been declared a Word Heritage Site. As I sat with my family absorbing the quite unique atmosphere of the place, a group of middle aged, middle class English people alighted from a nearby rock leaving several coke cans behind. I remonstrated with them about despoiling a beautiful place but they just looked at me as though I was completely deranged. One even said something about it ‘keeping someone in a job’. The problem is, though, in most areas of natural beauty, no one has the job of picking up litter. So if items are dropped there they just stay where they are left until they decay, which, in the case of most modern drinks containers, is a period of time about the same as the half life of uranium.

I hear the Home Secretary is planning – or has possibly already implemented – citizenship classes for immigrants into the country. There are plenty of people who are already here who could do with some of those.

P.S.

I recently lost my police cap after it fell out of my police car following a slightly embarrassing series of events that I best draw a veil over. A couple days later, however, it was handed to one of my local Post Masters who phoned me. My faith in human nature is restored!

Harston

Six crimes reported last month: three non-dwelling burglaries, one violent disorder, one theft of a pedal cycle and one violent domestic. Two of the burglaries were to sheds in which tools were stolen, the other was to a commercial premise in which entry was gained while staff were there, but the offenders were disturbed by an alarm sounding and fled empty handed. The violent disorder was linked to an argument in a pub for which persons were arrested

Fowlmere

Four crimes reported last month: two non-dwelling burglaries and two thefts from motor vehicles. The burglaries were both to the same commercial premise in which metal cable was stolen. The cars that were broken into were at the nature reserve and at an isolated farm.

Foxton

Four crimes reported last month: one non-dwelling burglary, one theft in a dwelling, one theft and one malicious telephone call. The burglary was an incident in which five males entered a commercial building by a goods door during the day when staff were on the premise, stole items and then made off when challenged by staff. The thefts were of scrap metal from a yard and cash from a house by a family member.

Barrington

Two incidents reported last month, which were sheep stolen from a field and a gate removed from a farmyard.

Shepreth

One crime reported last month, which was arson to a derelict building.

Thriplow

Three crimes reported last month: one non-dwelling burglary, one domestic violence and one making off without payment. The burglary was to a garden shed in which a lawn mower was stolen and the making off without payment was from a local service station.

Whittlesford

Three crimes reported last month: one malicious telephone call, one making off without payment and one incident of domestic violence. The making off without payment was from a local service station and the malicious telephone call involved the sending of malicious text messages.

Heydon

Three incidents reported last month: one criminal damage, one theft and one theft in a dwelling. The criminal damage was the apparent deliberate destruction of the bench on the village green. The theft in a dwelling was the theft of cash by a family member and the theft was of cash from a commercial premise

Wimpole

One crime reported last month which, was criminal damage to the window of a vehicle parked at the car park of Wimpole Hall.

Gt Chishill, Lt Chishill, Newton, Orwell, Harlton and Haslingfield

No crime reported

May the Force be with you! John Sutton