Proactive work by a local policing team has led to weapons being seized as the force continues its commitment to cracking down on knife crime.
Two men seen acting suspiciously around a police knife arch at Nottingham Railway Station were subsequently searched and arrested when weapons were found.
The metal-detecting walk-through knife arch was in place at the station on Thursday last week (19 May) as part of a week of action to tackle knife crime, in support of the national Operation Sceptre.
Not long after setting up the arch, neighbourhood and Reacher officers spotted two men acting suspiciously, trying to actively avoid the knife arch.
The officers approached both men and carried out a search, which led to the discovery of a machete and a lock knife.
Nigel Ndlovu, aged 22, of Brambling Road, Stoke Bardolph, and Eric Rowland, aged 20, of Noel Street, Hyson Green, have been charged with possession of a bladed article in a public place.
Both were remanded to appear at Nottingham Magistrates’ Court at a later date.
PC Matt Mason, from the city centre Operation Reacher team, said: “The discovery of these weapons was a really positive result which came from our proactive efforts to clamp down on knife crime.
“It was a particularly poignant time to have made such a recovery during Operation Sceptre, which shines a light on the good work both our neighbourhood and Reacher teams do all year round to tackle knife crime.”
The week of action, which ended yesterday (Sunday 22 May), provided just a sample of the continuous year-round work being done to prevent knife crime in Nottinghamshire and to protect communities from the harm it causes.
Nottinghamshire’s joint approach to tackling the issue involves police, partners and local communities all working closely together to tackle the issue.
Positive action to raise awareness of the devastating consequences of knife crime, to help prevent incidents from happening in the first place, included educational events at local schools and colleges and proactive public engagement including the use of metal-detecting walk-through knife arches.
A spotlight was also shone on proactive work going on to keep people safe and remove dangerous weapons from circulation including community weapons sweeps and patrols in knife crime hot-spot areas.