Our View
Sending out right message
Pro-active policing and a criminal-justice system which is determined not to let crooks benefit from their crimes. Those are two of the things that most members of the beleaguered British public want to see, and in Bradford this week they have had their wishes granted.
The raids carried out by police yesterday at addresses in Little Horton, Great Horton and Canterbury send out a message to the criminals and the law-abiding public alike that even small-time crime is being taken seriously. And rightly so.
Although the headlines usually focus on acts of violence or major drugs offences, crime at any level is an affront to many people and if unchecked can help to undermine public peace of mind and encourage the perception that this is a lawless country. Letting offenders get away with not paying fines, or failing to pursue motorists for driving offences, sends out entirely the wrong signals.
It is encouraging, too, that Liaquat Khan, the Bradford ringleader of a scam aimed at defrauding small businesses across Yorkshire of up to £2 million, has not only been jailed for two-and-a-half years but has also been ordered to hand over £25,000 or face a further 13 months behind bars - a clear signal that crime must not be allowed to pay.
Let's hope that both these examples, which will have been widely welcomed by the general public, are only the first of many similar initiatives and measures which will take the fight against crime right to the criminals' doors.
8:11am Friday 28th March 2008
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