Crime

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​Loan sharks operate illegally in our communities. They may appear friendly at first, but quickly trap their borrowers into a spiral of debt, before resorting to the most callous and extreme methods such as violence, threats and intimidation to enforce repayment.
 
Loan sharks should be avoided at all costs. Few will offer paperwork, so borrowers are completely in the dark as to how much they are repaying. Some will take items as security such as passports or driving licences or as seen in some cases even bank or post office cards with the PIN in order to withdraw directly from borrowers accounts. Borrowers are often left paying back far more than they borrowed or can afford and living each day in fear of the loan shark.
 
However, help is at hand from the England Illegal Money Lending Team who are cracking down on this crime. Along with Teams in Scotland and Wales, the England Team have secured more than 400 prosecutions for illegal money lending and related criminal activity leading to custodial sentences in excess of 568 years. Almost £83,980,880 million worth of illegal debt has been written off and more than 31,411 loan shark victims have been helped.
 
Anyone who has been the victim of a loan shark is encouraged to contact the Team in the strictest confidence.
 
Call the 24/7 confidential hotline 0300 555 2222
 
 
 
As well as investigating and prosecuting loan sharks, the Team work in communities across England encouraging people to turn away from loan sharks. For more information please contact your local Liaise Officer -
Wendy Loades
Lead in Awareness, Intelligence, Support & Education
South West of England
Tel: 07557 203145
Email: wendy.loades@birmingham.gov.uk
 
Stop Loan Sharks Team - Trading Standards
PO Box 12971
Birmingham
B33 3BD
 www.stoploansharks.co.uk
www.twitter.com/loansharknews
www.facebook.com/stoploansharksproject
www.youtube.com/StopLoanSharks
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To ensure residents are informed Pucklechurch parish council will post a report on the latest crime statistics approximately every eight weeks.  All information is taken from the Avon and Somerset Constabulary.  Please remember all crime should be reported  using 101 or 999 in an emergency. 
CRIMESTOPPERS 
I'd like to introduce Crimestoppers in the West Country to you.  We are the only independent crime fighting charity in the UK.  We help communities stay safe by raising awareness of crime and offering a free 24 hr anonymous reporting service.  Please see the attached impact report for our latest figures. On average in the West Country each month we pass 257 actionable reports to the police to investigate and of these an average of 37% result in a positive outcome.  Our volunteer committee is dedicated to helping the public speak up, stop crime and stay safe whilst remaining 100% anonymous.  Always.
 
Our latest national campaign is called ‘One Call Can ’  please see our website One Call Can... | Crimestoppers (crimestoppers-uk.org)
 
https://crimestoppers-uk.org/campaigns-media/news/2021/may/one-call-can?fbclid=IwAR3VfocWkDIrIDNeWC8O1A_BQPdkDNrz1FjFhllAezgMnesQecd9IhXeJn0
 
Additionally there are lots of local campaigns going on and being planned.  Please follow us on www.facebook.com/CrimestoppersintheWestCountry