Thieves feared to have slaughtered more than 100 stolen sheep – as criminals ‘weaponise’ cost of living crisis

Published

2 years ago

October 7, 2022

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When farmer Ed Lovejoy rounded up his sheep last month, he was left “stunned” and feeling “pretty sick”.

A total of 116 ewes had vanished from his flock of 460, and the missing livestock were worth £17,000.

Initially suspecting the animals may have escaped, Mr Lovejoy went searching near his farm in Woodchurch, Kent, but there was no trace of them.

It wasn’t until a witness reported seeing someone on a quad bike pushing the sheep to the side of a field that the reality dawned on the 40-year-old farmer.

Brazen thieves had staged a daring raid to steal the animals, which are now feared to have been slaughtered and their meat sold on the black market.

It comes amid warnings that Britain is a facing a “potential crime crisis” linked to the soaring cost of living.

Electricity thefts, shoplifting, insurance fraud and rural crime are reportedly on the increase as the cost of food and energy rises.

Fraudsters are “weaponising” the situation with a series of scams, a charity says, and organised crime groups are said to be viewing the crisis as an opportunity to recruit.

In the countryside, insurance company NFU Mutual has warned of an increase in rustling, and says that livestock worth £2.4m were stolen last year, and animals worth another £1.4m were taken in the first eight months of this year.

Mr Lovejoy said the theft of his Romney sheep, a Kent breed, would have a “knock-on effect” on his business for two to three years.

He suspects the animals were taken to a “dodgy abattoir” or killed and the meat sold by the criminals themselves.

“There is years and years of breeding that goes into these sheep and you care for them all year round,” Mr Lovejoy told Sky News.

“For someone to just take them and steal them, it makes you feel pretty sick.

“I think they would have probably slaughtered them and put them into the food chain somehow.”

Fears livestock thieves can’t be stopped

Mr Lovejoy said he reported the theft to the police but the culprits have not been found.

He is now concerned the criminals will return and try to attempt to steal more.

“How do you secure 700 acres to stop people getting on it to steal sheep? I’m not sure it’s possible,” he said.

“It is a worry that they’re going to take more.

“If food becomes really expensive then there’s always a black market.

“If the cost of living crisis gets worse, there’s a chance we’re going to see more and more livestock thefts.”

Rise in violent crime predicted

A criminologist says the UK faces a “potential crime crisis” linked to the cost of living, including an increase in violence on the streets.

Dr Robert Hesketh, from Liverpool John Moores University, told Sky News: “As the cost of living crisis starts to peak, I think there will be an increase (in crime) – I think it’s a no-brainer.

“In areas like mine – marginalised areas, areas of social exclusion – it’s going to shoot up, particularly with young people.

“I heard on one occasion the family of a young person being told: ‘Look, we’ll pay your Sky bills, just let your lad do some deliveries for us’.

“You’ll get people within organised crime groups monopolise on this, because they know people are going to need money.

“Already there’s been an increase in electricity theft – it’s up 13% (in 2021-22 on the previous year).

“In communities like mine, it only takes one to get away with it and there’s [people] saying: ‘Get on to this’.”

‘Police are going to have to prioritise’

Dr Hesketh said organised crime groups view the cost of living crisis as “an opportunity to get more manpower, more people involved in street crime and drug dealing, and those in charge keep their hands clean”.

“With the organised crime groups around my area, it’s very territorial,” he added.

“As people get desperate, and organised criminals get more greedy, then they’ll start overtaking other people’s turf…. obviously that becomes violent.

“Violence is part and parcel of organised crime… that’s how they thrive. Without violence, they’re nothing.”

Dr Hesketh said he believed the police “are going to have to prioritise”.

“Resources are short as it is, they’re going to focus mainly on more serious violent acts, I think,” he added.

Victims targeted ‘left, right and centre’

Victim Support said it had seen people targeted by scams around the government’s council tax rebate and an increase in people trying to take out “quick loans” through unregulated services.

Lisa Mills, the charity’s senior fraud manager, told Sky News: “People are in this hot state – they’re anxious about the cost of living – so they are taking more risks than they would normally.

“This scenario now is going to be weaponised by the fraudsters. We saw it with the pandemic.

“When people are feeling anxious and uncertain, their ability to rationalise and think about things is going to be compromised.

“What we have seen is people who are desperately in need of money are taking unnecessary risks by taking out loans online.

“We know people are going to be targeted left, right and centre.”

Criminals exploiting cost of living crisis with energy rebate scam emails

Criminals are cashing in on the energy crisis by offering bogus rebates to try and trick victims into handing over bank account details.

Over a fortnight in September, police received nearly 1,600 reports of suspicious emails with links to malicious websites designed to steal personal and financial information.

The scam emails pretend to be from the energy regulator Ofgem and are headed “Claim your bill rebate now”, telling recipients they are due a payment under a government scheme to help people cope with escalating gas and electricity costs.

Detective Chief Inspector Hayley King, of the City of London Police, said: “It is shameful that in a time of financial hardship, criminals are targeting members of the public by claiming they are entitled to receiving rebates and refunds.”

“If an email is genuine, the company will never push you into handing over your details. Always take a moment to consider if the request you have received is genuine.”

Ms Mills warned of a rise in “money muling” – when a criminal persuades someone to put “dirty” money into their account before the funds are then moved into another account.

“It’s in effect money laundering – it’s washing dirty money,” she said.

“We have seen instances where younger people are being promised free trainers if they accept money to then forward on.

“Your guard is down in this time of crisis and people will just be at the end of their tether thinking ‘I need a quick fix now’, and this is being offered to me and it sounds great.”

Ms Mills said that some unregulated loans may charge high interest rates or the loan may not even exist.

She said: “As soon as they pay money, a website gets taken down, you’ve lost your money – so the loan didn’t exist in the first place.

“It’s capturing people that way.”

The National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC) has said forces have considered the impact of the cost of living crisis but denied reports it was preparing for a “tidal wave” of violent crime and public disorder.

An NPCC spokesman said: “Our ongoing priority remains prevention, and we continually work with communities to gather intelligence around crime and disorder.

“As a result, policing is able to regularly intervene early to prevent incidents or their escalation due to this community intelligence to keep the public safe.”

UK

Gatwick Airport: Police release two people who were detained amid security incident as South Terminal reopens

Published

15 mins ago

November 23, 2024

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Gatwick Airport: Police release two people who were detained amid security incident as South Terminal reopens

Two people detained during a security incident at Gatwick Airport have been allowed to continue their journeys after a suspect package saw a “large part” of the South Terminal evacuated.

The terminal was closed for hours after the discovery of a “suspected prohibited item” in a passenger’s luggage sparked an emergency response. It reopened at around 3.45pm.

Officers from the EOD (Explosive Ordnance Disposal) team “made the package safe” before handing the airport back to its operator, Sussex Police said.

Their statement continued: “Two people who were detained while enquiries were ongoing have subsequently been allowed to continue their journeys.

“There will remain an increased police presence in the area to assist with passengers accessing the South Terminal for onward travel.”

The force also thanked the public and airport staff for their patience while the incident was ongoing.

Earlier the airport, which is the UK’s second busiest, said the terminal was evacuated after a “security incident”.

“The earlier security alert has now been resolved and cleared by police,” it later said in a statement on Friday afternoon.

“The South Terminal is reopening to staff and will be open to passengers shortly.”

Gatwick said some flights were cancelled while others were delayed.

It said passengers should contact their airlines for any updates on flights.

Footage on social media taken outside the airport showed crowds of travellers heading away from the terminal building.

“Arrived at London Gatwick for routine connection. Got through customs to find out they’re evacuating the entire airport,” one passenger said.

“Even people through security are being taken outside. Trains shut down,” another passenger added, who said “thousands” of people were forced to leave.

Another passenger said people near the gates were being told to stay there and not go back to the departure lounge.

People outside the airport were handed blankets and water, passengers told Sky News.

The airport said its North Terminal was still operating normally.

Gatwick Express said its trains did not call at Gatwick Airport during the police response, but the airport said trains would start calling there again once the terminal was fully reopened.

More than 600 flights were due to take off or land at Gatwick on Friday, amounting to more than 121,000 passenger seats, according to aviation analytics firm Cirium.

UK

Starmer says UK will ‘set out a path’ to raise defence spending to 2.5%

Published

3 hours ago

November 23, 2024

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Starmer says UK will 'set out a path' to raise defence spending to 2.5%

The UK will “set out a path” to lift defence spending to 2.5% of national income in the spring, the prime minister has said, finally offering a timeframe for an announcement on the long-awaited hike after mounting criticism.

Sir Keir Starmer gave the date during a phone call with Mark Rutte, the secretary general of NATO, in the wake of threats by Moscow to target UK and US military facilities following a decision by London and Washington to let Ukraine fire their missiles inside Russia.

There was no clarity though on when the 2.5% level will be achieved. The UK says it currently spends around 2.3% of GDP on defence.

Ukraine war latest: Follow live updates

A spokeswoman for Downing Street said that the two men “began by discussing the situation in Ukraine and reiterated the importance of putting the country in the strongest possible position going into the winter”.

They also talked about the deployment of thousands of North Korean soldiers to fight alongside Russia.

“The prime minister underscored the need for all NATO countries to step up in support of our collective defence and updated on the government’s progress on the strategic defence review,” the spokeswoman said.

“His government would set out the path to 2.5% in the spring.”

The defence review will also be published in the spring.

While a date for an announcement on 2.5% will be welcomed by the Ministry of Defence, analysts have long warned that such an increase is still well below the amount that is needed to rebuild the armed forces after decades of decline to meet growing global threats from Russia, an increasingly assertive China, North Korea and Iran.

They say the UK needs to be aiming to hit at least 3% – probably higher.

With Donald Trump returning to the White House, there will be significantly more pressure on the UK and other European NATO allies to accelerate increases in defence spending.