Every home in Portsmouth looks set to get SmartWater to protect precious possessions from burglars.
Portsmouth City Council is bidding for government cash to supply the invisible liquid to a handful of streets for free as part of a trial so residents can mark their property and if the number of burglaries drops then more people across the city will be given a chance to get their hands on a SmartWater kit and taught how to use them.
Councillor Jason Fazackarley, in charge of community safety, said: “We want to do as much as possible to try and deter burglars in Portsmouth. Burglary is a crime that can have a devastating effect on the victims. It has been proven that SmartWater does stop thieves, or at least make them think twice. Anything we can do to try and reduce the number of burglaries is a good thing.”
A recent police crackdown called Operation Nemesis reduced burglaries in Portsmouth, but figures show numbers are set to rise in the long-term. City leaders hope SmartWater will reverse this trend. Residents will be given a SmartWatser system, which includes a vial of the transparent liquid, which has a chemical code, and shown how to mark their goods. Police can use the forensic code within SmartWater to trace the owners of any marked item.
To give the kits to every Portsmouth home would cost around £1.1m. The council admits it doesn’t have funds in place, but is hoping to get government cash to help pay for the scheme. Streets with high numbers of burglaries will be chosen for the trial if the council’s bid is successful.
Already the police have piloted a similar scheme in Francis Avenue, Southsea, and Hayling Avenue, Copnor. Detective Inspector Nigel Oliver, from the police’s priority crime unit, said: “It has been very effective in the areas it has been deployed. I am delighted that further resources have been found to deploy it further.”
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