Operation Blunt makes a difference

by Hammersmith and Fulham Press Office
23/06/2008

Nearly 40 people have been arrested in the borough during the last month as part of a massive drive to tackle knife crime.

The crack down is part of ‘Operation Blunt’ - a pan-London initiative which aims to reduce the number of knives on London's streets, especially among young people aged 15 to 19. 

In this borough alone, between May 19 and June 22, 16 people were arrested for possessing an offensive weapon and six people were arrested for being in possession of an article with a point or a blade. In addition, eight people were apprehended for robbery and nine arrests were made for other offences.

These arrests led to nine knives and two other weapons being taken out of circulation.

Cllr Greg Smith, cabinet member for crime and anti-social behaviour, said: “Carrying a weapon of any description will not be tolerated in Hammersmith & Fulham or any other borough and I am delighted that the Police are taking such positive steps to combat this behaviour. We will continue to catch the small minority of young people who see nothing wrong with carrying a blade.”

As part of Operation Blunt, six search arches were installed discretely across the borough on separate days. The highly visible arches were placed at Fulham Broadway, Barons Court and Wood Lane tube stations, Goldhawk Road and Hammersmith bus garage.

As well as carrying out enforcement activities, Operation Blunt aims to educate young people about the risks of carrying knives and works closely with the community to identify a long term solution to the problem. 

Cllr Smith added: “Residents should rest assured that most young people are law abiding and do not carry offensive weapons. Unfortunately, some do and Operation Blunt is a highly visible method of catching them. The message to those who think it is acceptable to carry a knife is - your behaviour will simply not be tolerated.”