Police in Gosport, England recently began a program that provides elderly women with lanyards to help prevent purse theft.
In order to reduce purse thefts at area stores, police officers in Gosport, England recently announced a program that provides women with lanyards they can strap to their body and to their purses, according to the Portsmouth News.
In recent months, police have responded to several reports of stolen purses in the area. Elderly women have been targeted especially on the weekends, and there is little police can do once a purse is stolen.
Providing the lanyards is an inexpensive way to protect the purses. The police also believe that distributing the lanyards will help raise awareness of purse theft and prevent future crime.
"Myself and my colleague work in the town center and the High Street. Purse thefts are rife. We’re getting them every other Saturday and we had two on the same day recently," local police officer Alex Wallace told the news provider.
"We have noticed for a period of time that particularly in supermarkets and shops, elderly people, normally over the age of 60, had their purses stolen from their bags."
GosportInTouch.com reports that burglary in the city is higher than the national average. The website cites that there are 8.3 burglaries per thousand people in the population.
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