The Isle of Man is an easy target for professional burglars, says the Chief Constable in his annual report.

Detailing the spate of burglaries that occurred in January and February this year, Gary Roberts says two men were arrested but there was not enough evidence to prosecute them, despite a large police operation. He said the burglaries were 'brazen, professional and alarming' and highlighted key issues around border controls, social media and household safety.

In his report, the Chief Constable writes: 'The burglaries were carried out by professional criminals, who showed the greatest level of forensic awareness that the Constabulary has encountered. They were often committed in plain sight, usually as darkness fell and the offenders were often seen by members of the public, who failed to spot anything suspicious or, when in a couple of cases they did, they failed to report what they had seen in a timely manner...The Island is an easy target for professional burglars and people are not security aware. The offenders exploited this.

'Many victims were on holiday when the offences occurred and some had even advertised the fact on social media sites. Some were out and had not taken basic precautions. The large majority, though, fell victim to determined and skilful criminals...The Constabulary did its best to detect the offences and at organisational and individual level officers are upset that they failed to make more progress. If effort alone were a guarantee of success, then detection would have been guaranteed.'

See our MTTV interview with Chief Constable Gary Roberts at
http://www.manx.net/tv/mt-tv/watch/74234/hard-hitting-report-from-chief-constable

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