Dozens of Whitby and Ryedale farms hit by machinery thefts

Farms in North Yorkshire have been hit by a string of machinery and quadbike thefts

Dozens of farms in North Yorkshire have been hit by a string of quadbike and machinery thefts, police have said.

Detectives said the raids in Whitby and Ryedale were causing "misery and fear among the farming community".

North Yorkshire Police and Cleveland Police have launched a joint operation to tackle the thieves, who are thought to be travelling south across the region's border to raid farms.

More than 30 farms have been targeted since November, the forces said.

Det Insp Phil Giblin, of North Yorkshire Police, said: "This is abhorrent and simply cannot be tolerated."

Police said they had deployed specialist resources in the area to detect and deter travelling thieves.

Officers from the Rural Task Force, Roads Policing Groups, Operational Support Unit, Firearms Support Unit, the Dog Unit and the National Police Air Service are all involved in the operation.

Local neighbourhood policing teams have also been deployed to help reassure concerned farmers and provide advice on how to prevent and report crimes.

Det Insp Giblin urged people not to "take matters into your own hands" if they were targeted by thieves.

He also said witnesses should dial 999, rather than 101, to report ongoing crimes to give police "the best chance of catching suspects in the act".

Farmers in some parts of the UK have employed private security staff to patrol their land to protect crops and expensive equipment amid a rural crime wave.

Suspects are almost 25% more likely to be charged for crimes in urban areas than in the countryside, BBC analysis of data has found.