Criminals operating in Nottinghamshire are being warned that they will come up against ‘the very best resources’ as the force invests in new state-of-art vehicles.
Six new BMW 5 series cars have been drafted in to Nottinghamshire Police’s front line fleet to bolster the high-speed pursuit and rapid response capability of roads policing and armed response officers.
People will be able to see them in action as they are used to hunt down suspects on the action-packed national TV documentary Police Interceptors, which features Nottinghamshire Police every week.
Chief Constable Craig Guildford, said: “This is some great kit which represents hard work on behalf of our transport department and it gives me great pleasure to deliver on my promise to give the front line the very best resources to do their job.
“Roads policing is so important to local communities, and as a result of Operation Uplift, we are able to increase our resources force-wide.”
The new ‘mild hybrid’ vehicles are equipped with an electric motor which allows the engine to be turned off whenever the car is coasting, braking or stopping and enables them to be quickly restarted which makes them very responsive to incidents as well as having great economical value.
Four of them are armed response vehicles and all are equipped with all the latest vehicle recognition technology, on-board video capability, equipment used for enforcing warrants and advanced medical capability as well as the standard policing kit.
Coupled with mobile devices and portable finger print scanning, the vehicles act as a mobile police office.
They have been made available through Operation Uplift which is a national drive to increase the number of front line officers along with resources.
CC Guildford added: “I aim to give the front line the very best technology and tools to do their job and I’m delighted with the vehicles which are economical, efficient and great value.
“People can see just how much they are put to good use in Police Interceptors.” He added.
The cars, which have only been operational for a couple of weeks, have already been put to the test having responded to a number of serious incidents.
This included one of the first incidents the vehicles were used for where they provided vital support after a 17-year-old boy fled from officers having threatened them with a knuckle duster in Mansfield town centre.
It followed a report that five youths were breaching Covid restrictions by sitting closely together near to the Civic Centre in Chesterfield Road South at around 3.40pm on 11 January 2021.
A youth was arrested following a foot chase and having been challenged with a Taser. A knuckle duster was recovered after it was believed to have been thrown over a wall.
Craig Luckett, Roads Policing Sergeant for Nottinghamshire Police, said: “The vehicles really proved their effectiveness and contributed to a great team effort between ourselves, Mansfield response and operation Reacher.
“They are equipped with the technology and the enhancement of speed and stability which allows the officer to respond more effectively and efficiently, and as was the case with this incident, they provided the necessary trained support to our divisional colleagues.”
“Having the very best technology at our fingertips really enables us to do the very best job we can in fighting crime and keeping people safe across Nottinghamshire’s roads network.”
Paddy Tipping, Nottinghamshire’s Police and Crime Commissioner, said: “It’s really important that we equip our officers with the tools they need to do their job and my budget recognises this. These cars and their specially trained drivers, as we have seen on Police Interceptors, do a great job in catching criminals and keeping Nottinghamshire safer.
“I’m particularly pleased that we agreed a good deal which represents good value for the local taxpayers and helps us meet our environmental pledge.”
See just what the vehicles are capable of by tuning into Police Interceptors every Monday at 8pm on My5.
