Lincolnshire Police use drones to tackle caravan crime

Lincolnshire Police said it was using a variety of methods to suppress burglaries

Lincolnshire Police is using drone technology to tackle caravan burglaries after nearly 40% of residential break-ins were at holiday homes.

There were 277 home burglaries recorded between September 2022 and July 2023 in the East Lindsey area, of which 106 took place in caravans.

The force said 30 of the reported incidents had resulted in an arrest.

Officers said coastal caravan crime was a priority and they were using a number of new initiatives to tackle it.

The majority of the recorded offences were in areas with the highest concentration of caravan parks.

Those included Chapel St Leonards, Skegness and Ingoldmells, the force said.

Ch Insp Lee St Quinton said new methods were being used to deter criminals

Police said caravan burglaries were "consistently higher" in the summer months, but officers had seen "a more significant peak in autumn 2022" after holidaymakers had left for the season.

Ch Insp Lee St Quinton said they were trying to educate people about security.

"We're also bringing in new techniques, using our UTV [utility terrain vehicle] vehicle, which means we can get around caravan sites a lot quicker.

"We're using drone technology and we have got lots of stuff that we can bring in if we need to, including some covert methods."

Martin Adams, from Rotherham, has been holidaying in his caravan at Ingoldmells for 22 years and last month witnessed an intruder climbing through the window.

"About three in the morning I heard a great big bang and there were a young lad trying to get through the window," he said.

"I jumped up and he just scarpered and legged it."

Martin Adams said his family were "uneasy" about staying in their caravan after a break-in

He said his sister-in-law's purse had been stolen in the break-in and the incident had left the family "uneasy" about staying in the caravan.

"I felt numb," he said.

"You just don't feel like going back to your caravan, you don't feel safe in it."

He said there had been a subsequent break-in at another caravan on the site, but there had been no further issues after CCTV was installed.