Billboard adverts will warn would-be cross-border criminals

Kent's thieves are in for a rude awakening if they cross borders to commit crime.

Surrey Police is launching a high-profile campaign to crack down on burglars and car criminals who hop across their boundaries.

Officers are using number plate recognition technology and a major advertising campaign to keep out our thieves.

They have even stationed an officer at Tunbridge Wells police station.

The move comes as around 40 per cent of so-called 'serious acquisitive crime' in Surrey – such as burglary and vehicle crime – is committed by offenders from outside the county.

And almost 60 per cent of serious organised crime gangs hitting Surrey are not based there.

Operation Shield is the force's long-term strategy to protect residents from cross-border criminals.

A field intelligence officer from Surrey Police has now joined colleagues from Kent Police and is working full-time from Tunbridge Wells police station.

Assistant Chief Constable Jerry Kirkby said: "By placing officers in neighbouring forces we are already seeing benefits for the whole region.

"Travelling criminals pay no attention to county borders and usually operate across a wide geographical area.

"By sharing intelligence with other forces, we are uncovering the full scope of their criminality and building strong cases against them."

As well as the number plate recognition cameras, advertising will appear on roadside billboards next to major routes, on bus shelters near the Surrey-Kent border and also on the back of buses serving routes in the area.