Operation Rimini returns to Stockport to tackle ASB and retail crime in run up to Christmas
Operation Rimini, GMP Stockport's monthly day of action, focused on tackling retail crime and anti-social behavior (ASB) in Stockport town center. Activities included crime prevention stalls, fraud awareness campaigns, and test purchases to prevent underage knife sales. Three arrests and eight stop searches were made, with no successful underage knife sales. The operation also involved taxi licensing checks and community engagement.
Stockport town centre transformed into a crime-fighting hub Friday as hundreds of Black Friday shoppers encountered uniformed officers at every turn during the monthly Operation Rimini blitz.
Police cadets struck first, fanning out to 11 retailers where they attempted to purchase knives as minors. Every store passed the test, turning away the underage buyers and demonstrating retailers’ commitment to age-restricted sales laws.
While cadets tested shops, neighbourhood officers erected crime prevention stalls throughout Merseyway Shopping Centre, zeroing in on fraud awareness as bargain-hunters crowded the precinct. Officers and partner agencies dispensed safety advice to streams of shoppers, while a pop-up booth signed residents onto Bee in the Loop, the free neighbourhood alert system.
Superintendent Richard Arthern took to the airwaves mid-morning, fielding questions from BBC Radio Manchester’s Joe McGrath in a live broadcast that crackled across airwaves while officers below conducted eight stop searches and made three arrests.
At the train station, council licensing teams joined police for a taxi enforcement sweep following complaints from local cab firms. The joint sting formed part of the wider crackdown that Sergeant Jason Holmwood declared would continue long after Friday’s operation wound down.
“We have been out in Stockport Town Centre today as part of Operation Rimini to ensure we are visible in our communities and tackling the issues that matter to them the most,” Holmwood said. “And that doesn’t stop today when Operation Rimini is over - this is an ongoing operation which shows our commitment to stopping crime.”
The sergeant pointed to Stockport’s massive regeneration as driving the need for proactive policing: “There have been huge changes in Stockport as it has undergone a massive regeneration, and we need to stay ahead of that curve and make sure we are challenging people who are coming here to cause anti-social behaviour.”
Three arrests, eight searches, eleven successful retail compliance checks - the numbers stacked up as officers packed away their stalls, leaving shoppers with safety leaflets and a promise of permanent vigilance.
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