Telephone firms will likely be summoned to the Home Office to debate measures to deal with the crime after snatching incidents in England and Wales greater than doubled final 12 months.
Government figures present an estimated 78,000 individuals had their telephones or baggage snatched on the road within the 12 months to March, in contrast with 31,000 the earlier 12 months.
Police minister Dame Diana Johnson stated the Government wished producers to make sure any stolen telephones could possibly be completely disabled to forestall them being bought second-hand.
Police chiefs will even be tasked with discovering out who’s stealing telephones and the place the stolen gadgets find yourself.
The authorities stated rising demand for second-hand telephones within the UK and overseas was believed to be a significant motive behind the latest rise in thefts.
The Home Ministry goes to organise a summit by which expertise firms and cellphone producers will likely be requested to think about improvements that may assist curb unlawful commerce of telephones.
The authorities stated it hoped to reinforce anti-theft options already constructed into smartphones.
Dame Diana stated the Government hoped to “break the business model” of individuals organising burglaries.
He stated: “This new Government is determined to crack down on snatchings, burglaries, knife robberies and other crimes that make people feel unsafe in our communities, and we are working to get thousands more uniformed officers into our communities to restore neighbourhood policing.”
“Phone companies must ensure that any stolen phones can be quickly, easily and permanently deactivated, rather than re-registered for sale on the second-hand market, and we will be meeting with them shortly to discuss what further action is needed to do this.”
Of the 78,000 burglaries reported within the 12 months to March, solely 0.8% resulted in somebody being charged.
Nearly 82% of investigations had been closed by the police with none suspect being recognized.
Efforts to deal with burglaries will even embody growing patrols in areas throughout the nation most prone to severe violence, together with knifepoint robberies.
Commander Richard Smith of the National Police Chiefs' Council stated safety forces had been “continuing to target habitual offenders who are responsible for committing a large scale crime.”
“However, we know we can't buy our way out of this problem,” he added. “Manufacturers and the technology industry have a vital role to play in reducing the opportunities for criminals to profit from the resale of stolen handsets.”
With inputs from BBC
