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Tackling Street Robbery: A Comparative Evaluation of Operation Eagle Eye

NCJ Number
176689
Author(s)
J E Stockdale; P J Gresham
Date Published
1998
Length
74 pages
Annotation
This paper evaluates a strategy to cope with street robbery in London.
Abstract
During the early 1990s the Metropolitan Police developed a strategy to cope with rising numbers of incidents and relatively low clear-up rate of street robberies in London. Operation Eagle Eye was a proactive, intelligence-led approach with improved investigative practices and concentration of resources -- personnel, vehicles, surveillance equipment, information technology and extra funding -- in those areas most affected by the problem. This report examines the results of Operation Eagle Eye and compares the strategy with actions by two other police forces which relied on local, generally short-term operations. A proactive, well-resourced strategy can have an impact on the problem of street robbery, but it requires the cooperation and active involvement of all operational officers, not just members of specialist teams. In addition, much anti-crime work lies outside the domain of the police service and requires a more radical and coordinated multi-agency approach. Tables, figures, notes, references, appendixes, glossary