Burglars made to wear GPS tags in world-first scheme to crack down on neighbourhood crimes originalfm.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from originalfm.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Burglars, robbers and thieves will now be tagged after release from prison BURGLARS, robbers and thieves will now be required to wear GPS tags to track their movements after they are released from prison. The ‘world first’ pilot scheme is set to be rolled out in six areas, including Cheshire, from next month. Under the new rules, criminals who have been convicted of burglary, robbery or theft and have served an imprisonment of a year or more will automatically be tagged upon their release. This will allow their whereabouts to be monitored by satellites 24 hours a day for up to 12 months afterwards.
The scheme will launch on April 12 initially in Avon and Somerset, Cheshire, Gloucestershire, Gwent, Humberside and West Midlands, before it is expanded to 13 more areas in September.
Justice chiefs said over half of criminals convicted of theft offences, including burglary, and almost one third of thugs convicted of robbery reoffend within a year. Reoffending rates for all other cases are 23 percent.
The GPS tags will be monitored by satellites 24 hours a day.
Officials hope this novel approach will reduce the estimated £4.8billion burden such crimes place on the taxpayer every year .
Thieves will be tracked with a tag to stop cycle of reoffending (Image: Getty)
PROLIFIC burglars, robbers and thieves in Avon and Somerset are to be among the first in the world to be tracked by satellite. The constabulary is among six forces taking part in the world-first scheme to fit GPS tags to thieves on their release from prison. It will serve as an extra source of intelligence to help police catch persistent offenders as figures show more than half of thieves and burglars re-offend within a year. Under new rules, burglars, robbers and thieves who have served a prison sentence of a year or more will be automatically fitted with a tag on release, allowing their whereabouts to be monitored by GPS satellites 24 hours a day for up to 12 months.