High-tech detectors launched to tackle knife crime

The new knife detectors can pick up weapons as small as razor blades, according to police

New state-of-the art knife detectors are to be deployed throughout West Yorkshire in a bid to further tackle serious knife crime.

The five fully-portable units could detect concealed weapons anywhere on a person's body and could find items as small as razor blades, according to West Yorkshire Police.

The Metrasens Ultra search poles would replace the older style knife arches used by officers at busy stations and large events, a force spokesperson said.

They could also be used to scan large numbers of people at a time, meaning searches would be "swifter and less intrusive", they added.

The spokesperson said the introduction of the new kit was part of Operation Jemlock, which saw police working closely with West Yorkshire Violence Reduction Partnership (VRP).

Since its launch in 2019, the operation, which involves officers patrolling high priority areas, has so far seen more than 11,000 arrests and recovered more than 2,000 weapons.

The West Yorkshire VRP had funded the new detectors, according to the force.

The machines are much quicker to assemble than previous ones, West Yorkshire Police said

Ch Insp James Kitchen said: “Since the launch of Jemlock, we have seen sustained falls in overall knife offending and new tools available to us, such as these new search poles, will certainly assist us in helping to keep driving knife crime down.

“Every seizure makes communities safer, and much more intensive work to take illegal weapons off the streets and target those carrying them is planned.”

Det Ch Supt Lee Berry, director of West Yorkshire VRP, said: “Prevention is always better than cure.

"Our investment in these new detectors will ensure we can quickly identify those carrying weapons, taking the appropriate action.

“Since the VRP was initially established in 2019, we have reached more than 100,000 children and young people through a portfolio of interventions, projects, and programmes."

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