0:00:02 > 0:00:05Our lives are blighted by antisocial behaviour.
0:00:06 > 0:00:09- Whether it's nuisance neighbours... - Will you let us in, please?
0:00:09 > 0:00:12..graffiti on the streets, or too much booze.
0:00:12 > 0:00:15You need to make your way away from here right now.
0:00:15 > 0:00:17This is the story of the police officers...
0:00:17 > 0:00:19This is the police. Are you in here?
0:00:19 > 0:00:21You've been drinking a bit today, haven't you?
0:00:21 > 0:00:23..council wardens...
0:00:23 > 0:00:27This is antisocial behaviour because it affects everybody.
0:00:27 > 0:00:31..and local volunteers whose job it is to keep it off our streets.
0:00:31 > 0:00:33Let's go do some good!
0:00:33 > 0:00:35Welcome to Street Patrol UK.
0:00:37 > 0:00:40Today, what the Met Police discover when they track down
0:00:40 > 0:00:41a suspected money launderer.
0:00:41 > 0:00:44SHOUTING
0:00:44 > 0:00:46He's thrown something out of the back window.
0:00:46 > 0:00:50We recovered a cricket-ball size of what looks to be crack cocaine
0:00:50 > 0:00:53and a golf-ball size of what looks to be heroin.
0:00:53 > 0:00:55The Welsh enforcement officers
0:00:55 > 0:00:59getting stuck in to deal with the worst possible kind of waste.
0:00:59 > 0:01:04It could be dog faeces, human faeces.
0:01:04 > 0:01:07I'm not going to go into the bag to check.
0:01:07 > 0:01:08And the local residents
0:01:08 > 0:01:12determined to keep criminals out of their communities.
0:01:12 > 0:01:14It was nasty living here.
0:01:14 > 0:01:18Everyone you met had got something horrible.
0:01:33 > 0:01:37People who sell drugs are antisocial in many ways.
0:01:37 > 0:01:39Preying on the vulnerable, feeding their addiction
0:01:39 > 0:01:41and attracting other criminal behaviour.
0:01:41 > 0:01:46Every time the police get a dealer off the streets, it's a result.
0:01:49 > 0:01:53Thank you for coming down and helping us do these warrants today.
0:01:53 > 0:01:57It's 7:00am in Islington, North London.
0:01:57 > 0:01:59The Metropolitan Police are preparing to raid the house
0:01:59 > 0:02:02of a man known to them for several years.
0:02:02 > 0:02:05The warrants are in relation to
0:02:05 > 0:02:07a job that started on 6th January 2014.
0:02:07 > 0:02:12DC Jenkinson from the Met's Criminal Finance division briefs the team.
0:02:12 > 0:02:14This subject and another male were stopped in a vehicle
0:02:14 > 0:02:17with cannabis and a large amount of cash.
0:02:17 > 0:02:20And it's the cash that has prompted further investigation.
0:02:20 > 0:02:24Between September 2013 and March 2014,
0:02:24 > 0:02:27he spent almost £12,000 on hire vehicles,
0:02:27 > 0:02:30which is excessive by anyone's standard.
0:02:30 > 0:02:34Police know that hire cars are often used by criminals
0:02:34 > 0:02:36to try and remain undetected.
0:02:36 > 0:02:39This, along with the man's remarkably healthy bank balance,
0:02:39 > 0:02:41has rung alarm bells.
0:02:41 > 0:02:44He only receives housing benefit and council tax benefit.
0:02:44 > 0:02:47The only other income he has is £20,000 of unexplained cash deposits
0:02:47 > 0:02:49going into his account over the past two years,
0:02:49 > 0:02:53which flags up that he's certainly involved in something
0:02:53 > 0:02:55and laundering money... of those proceeds.
0:02:57 > 0:02:59So today, they're paying a surprise visit.
0:03:01 > 0:03:04The police don't yet know if they will find anything at the property,
0:03:04 > 0:03:07but are looking for any evidence of money laundering.
0:03:07 > 0:03:09That is money obtained illegally,
0:03:09 > 0:03:12disguised as legitimate money or goods.
0:03:12 > 0:03:14It's a challenge that DC Rob Burrow
0:03:14 > 0:03:18from the Criminal Finance team is all too familiar with.
0:03:18 > 0:03:21Generally, it's about trying to hide the money
0:03:21 > 0:03:24or trying to conceal the money, even trying to spend the money.
0:03:26 > 0:03:28Cash is the hardest thing to follow because once it's gone,
0:03:28 > 0:03:32you don't know where it's gone, where the next stage is.
0:03:36 > 0:03:39Armed with heavy equipment for breaking down doors,
0:03:39 > 0:03:42the 13-strong squad get into position.
0:03:52 > 0:03:54An element of surprise is all-important.
0:03:55 > 0:03:58Outside the front door, they need to keep quiet
0:03:58 > 0:03:59so as not to alert the suspect.
0:04:07 > 0:04:09BANGING
0:04:14 > 0:04:16Police! Face down!
0:04:16 > 0:04:18YELLING
0:04:25 > 0:04:28The suspect is at home and quickly apprehended.
0:04:31 > 0:04:33But not before a suspicious package
0:04:33 > 0:04:35lands on the ground outside the flat.
0:04:35 > 0:04:40It would appear that he has thrown something out of the back window.
0:04:40 > 0:04:44So someone's gone into the back garden and is looking around there.
0:04:44 > 0:04:48Getting that back first. Don't know what it is yet.
0:04:48 > 0:04:50The police don't know who threw the package,
0:04:50 > 0:04:53but the contents seem to confirm their suspicions.
0:04:53 > 0:04:54There's quite a bit.
0:04:54 > 0:04:57A golf-ball size and a cricket-ball size of what he thinks is crack.
0:04:57 > 0:04:59Have they got him?
0:04:59 > 0:05:01Yeah. He lobbed it out the window.
0:05:01 > 0:05:04Officers have recovered a cricket-ball size
0:05:04 > 0:05:06of what looks to be crack cocaine
0:05:06 > 0:05:09and a golf-ball size of what looks to be heroin.
0:05:09 > 0:05:12We can't say officially, technically
0:05:12 > 0:05:14what it is until we get the stuff analysed,
0:05:14 > 0:05:17but it looks like we've got two large packages of drugs.
0:05:17 > 0:05:19At this stage, it's all suspicion,
0:05:19 > 0:05:21but it's enough to indicate that it's more than personal use.
0:05:21 > 0:05:23That, plus the fact that
0:05:23 > 0:05:25the circumstances around why we're here at all,
0:05:25 > 0:05:29which is lots of cash that we've noticed going through accounts.
0:05:29 > 0:05:31A systematic search now takes place
0:05:31 > 0:05:35in an attempt to find any more drugs or evidence of money laundering.
0:05:39 > 0:05:42And it's not long before an indication of plenty of cash
0:05:42 > 0:05:44is discovered in a cupboard.
0:05:44 > 0:05:47Dozens of boxes of expensive designer footwear.
0:05:49 > 0:05:52You can see all the shoe boxes that are being pulled out.
0:05:52 > 0:05:56He's on benefits, but can afford to spend hundreds of pounds
0:05:56 > 0:06:00per set of trainers, of which there's a whole cupboard full.
0:06:00 > 0:06:03Things like trainers are things he can buy and remain under the radar.
0:06:03 > 0:06:06You start buying other items, houses, cars,
0:06:06 > 0:06:09obviously, you come onto the radar a lot quicker.
0:06:09 > 0:06:12We obviously knew he was linked to drugs
0:06:12 > 0:06:14and then with things like the trainers that we see,
0:06:14 > 0:06:17again, it all sort of tallies up with the information
0:06:17 > 0:06:20we gathered in our investigation prior to coming in here today.
0:06:26 > 0:06:29Obviously, you get a sense of satisfaction out of it.
0:06:29 > 0:06:31He's been arrested for the money laundering,
0:06:31 > 0:06:34so all in all, it's a fairly good job.
0:06:35 > 0:06:38It's been a successful raid for the police.
0:06:38 > 0:06:40Now it's back to base to continue their investigation.
0:06:48 > 0:06:51Later - the audacious organised gangs
0:06:51 > 0:06:54making farmers' lives a misery.
0:06:55 > 0:06:58You don't feel safe walking around your own yard
0:06:58 > 0:07:00because you never know who's around the corner.
0:07:03 > 0:07:06Fly-tipping affects communities up and down the country.
0:07:06 > 0:07:09Now, it might not sound too bad if you're not affected,
0:07:09 > 0:07:14but if people are using the area where you live as an unlicensed dump
0:07:14 > 0:07:18and even dumping toxic waste, then it becomes a serious problem.
0:07:18 > 0:07:21And some local councils are determined to stamp it out.
0:07:21 > 0:07:24Llanelli, south-west Wales.
0:07:24 > 0:07:30This town of about 35,000 people sits on a picturesque estuary
0:07:30 > 0:07:32and is surrounded by beautiful countryside.
0:07:32 > 0:07:37But there's no shortage of people willing to spoil it.
0:07:37 > 0:07:39By fly-tipping.
0:07:42 > 0:07:46Last year, the local council spent £250,000
0:07:46 > 0:07:49cleaning up anything and everything dumped by the public.
0:07:49 > 0:07:53It's a huge problem. And the vast majority of offenders
0:07:53 > 0:07:56are never even seen, let alone caught.
0:07:56 > 0:07:58Carmarthenshire Council enforcement officers
0:07:58 > 0:08:00Paul Morris and Martyn Jones
0:08:00 > 0:08:02are part of a team dealing with fly-tipping
0:08:02 > 0:08:05and all sorts of other antisocial behaviour across the county.
0:08:05 > 0:08:09Antisocial behaviour has a wide spectrum.
0:08:09 > 0:08:13It could be anything from dog fouling, litter, fly-tipping,
0:08:13 > 0:08:16youths congregating on corners.
0:08:16 > 0:08:20It could be balls hitting the fence next to your property,
0:08:20 > 0:08:23and we deal with the whole of that spectrum.
0:08:26 > 0:08:28Today, they're out on patrol
0:08:28 > 0:08:32investigating the latest mess left by fly-tippers around the town.
0:08:32 > 0:08:36For our point of view within the town, it causes a vermin issue,
0:08:36 > 0:08:40it's unsightly, it detracts from inward investment,
0:08:40 > 0:08:44and it costs the authority a lot of money to clear.
0:08:44 > 0:08:49The council gets 1,500 reports of fly-tipping a year,
0:08:49 > 0:08:52and each one has to be checked out before it's cleaned up.
0:08:52 > 0:08:55So this is an incident that's been reported to us.
0:08:55 > 0:09:00Builder's sacks have been left in quite a nice area.
0:09:00 > 0:09:05It's just outside of Llanelli and it's used by dog-walkers
0:09:05 > 0:09:08and people come out for a bit of fresh air in the countryside,
0:09:08 > 0:09:11and then somebody's gone and dumped some, er, ton sacks of...
0:09:11 > 0:09:14it looks like builder's waste.
0:09:14 > 0:09:18Disgusting as it may seem, Paul and Martyn have to delve into every
0:09:18 > 0:09:22bit of rubbish they find to search for clues of who dumped it.
0:09:22 > 0:09:24What's in here, it's just hardcore.
0:09:24 > 0:09:28No, that's not hardcore, it's a nice bag of faeces.
0:09:28 > 0:09:29Yeah, it is.
0:09:30 > 0:09:35It could be dog faeces, human faeces.
0:09:35 > 0:09:39I don't know, but obviously I'm not going into the bag to check.
0:09:41 > 0:09:44The smell is, er...
0:09:44 > 0:09:45awful.
0:09:45 > 0:09:47And a newspaper for when they were having a read
0:09:47 > 0:09:50while they were doing that!
0:09:50 > 0:09:53There's a lot of white cider there, too.
0:09:53 > 0:09:55There's one, two, three, four, five bottles of that.
0:09:55 > 0:09:58Every discarded bag of rubbish poses a health hazard
0:09:58 > 0:10:00for the council to clean up.
0:10:00 > 0:10:04But Martyn then discovers something truly worrying.
0:10:04 > 0:10:05Asbestos.
0:10:05 > 0:10:09By law, asbestos can only be disposed of in designated tips,
0:10:09 > 0:10:12and users must pay for the service.
0:10:12 > 0:10:17Cos of the costs of disposing of it properly, people are just
0:10:17 > 0:10:21dumping it now, rather than pay and be out of pocket, you know.
0:10:21 > 0:10:26And this is a huge lake here, which has got a lot of wildlife in,
0:10:26 > 0:10:31and you've got asbestos on the peripheries of it, you know?
0:10:31 > 0:10:34Asbestos contains microscopic fibres, which, if inhaled,
0:10:34 > 0:10:37can cause fatal lung disease.
0:10:37 > 0:10:40A specialist team needs to be called in to remove it safely.
0:10:40 > 0:10:42It's a common problem.
0:10:42 > 0:10:45It's out of the main town, out of sight, out of mind.
0:10:45 > 0:10:48People drive in, dump whatever they've got on the back of the van
0:10:48 > 0:10:52and off they go. No consequences, no witnesses.
0:10:52 > 0:10:54Convenient for them, you know?
0:10:54 > 0:10:57But the antisocial fly-tippers don't restrict their dumping
0:10:57 > 0:10:59to the outskirts of town.
0:10:59 > 0:11:03Llanelli is criss-crossed by a network known as the Back Lanes,
0:11:03 > 0:11:07and they, too, are popular places to illegally dump rubbish.
0:11:07 > 0:11:09You see everything and anything gets thrown out.
0:11:09 > 0:11:12- What is it, fish?- Yeah.
0:11:12 > 0:11:14Well, this is a walkway that will be used by children
0:11:14 > 0:11:17on their routes to school, it's used by residents.
0:11:17 > 0:11:19You see there's parking areas,
0:11:19 > 0:11:23and the smell that's emanating from that is horrendous.
0:11:23 > 0:11:25It's rotting fish, at the end of the day.
0:11:25 > 0:11:27It's well-rotted, I would say.
0:11:27 > 0:11:29That's where you want smell-o-vision.
0:11:29 > 0:11:32I don't think anybody would want smell-o-vision with this.
0:11:32 > 0:11:34It stinks.
0:11:34 > 0:11:36Then, Paul makes another shocking discovery -
0:11:36 > 0:11:40a huge pile of building rubble, laced with asbestos.
0:11:40 > 0:11:44Well, this looks like the remnants of a garage roof, shed...
0:11:44 > 0:11:47And he has a good idea how this might have got here.
0:11:47 > 0:11:52What happens is there'll be a contractor or a man and his van
0:11:52 > 0:11:55who will come along, they will do the job
0:11:55 > 0:11:58and charge the price, and then they could well include
0:11:58 > 0:12:01the tipping in the price, which would give them extra money.
0:12:01 > 0:12:03That money then is in their back pocket,
0:12:03 > 0:12:08although the householder may think this is going to an approved site,
0:12:08 > 0:12:13when it is in effect being dumped in the public domain.
0:12:15 > 0:12:19As long as these panels remain intact they are relatively harmless,
0:12:19 > 0:12:22but if they are broken up, toxic asbestos fibres
0:12:22 > 0:12:26could be released, exposing anyone who handles them to the risk.
0:12:31 > 0:12:35If its status is bonded, then it's OK to deal with it
0:12:35 > 0:12:39as we are, but you don't want it lying around here in the public
0:12:39 > 0:12:43domain for too long. It needs to be cleared as soon as possible.
0:12:43 > 0:12:47What we will have to do now is obtain a special waste contractor
0:12:47 > 0:12:50who is trained in handling hazardous material.
0:12:50 > 0:12:55The cost of actually disposing of this, it is round about £400 a ton,
0:12:55 > 0:12:58and that cost then will be borne onto the local authority.
0:13:00 > 0:13:04Fly-tipping asbestos is an extremely serious crime.
0:13:04 > 0:13:09The worst offenders face a heavy fine and up to two years in prison.
0:13:09 > 0:13:12So the person who does this takes a big risk. They could end up
0:13:12 > 0:13:16in prison for maybe £200-300 in their back pocket.
0:13:16 > 0:13:20And that's not the only problem caused by this reckless fly-tipping.
0:13:20 > 0:13:23It may have encouraged other people to dump their rubbish
0:13:23 > 0:13:25in this back lane.
0:13:25 > 0:13:28These blue bags are meant to be for recycling,
0:13:28 > 0:13:33which doesn't include broken glass or last night's leftovers.
0:13:33 > 0:13:36You can see there's all sorts of food waste
0:13:36 > 0:13:40and it's just not how the waste should be presented.
0:13:40 > 0:13:45There's broken glass there for our crews to pick up in the bags.
0:13:45 > 0:13:47There we are, it's just stabbed me now!
0:13:48 > 0:13:53There, as you can see, if somebody else picks this up now
0:13:53 > 0:13:57it could go straight through their trouser leg as they're carrying it.
0:13:57 > 0:14:00Martyn has cut his finger on a broken bottle in the bag.
0:14:00 > 0:14:04Luckily, it's not serious, but he knows it could have been worse.
0:14:04 > 0:14:08We have syringes we've found in bags.
0:14:08 > 0:14:13Ultimately we're expected to go through the bags,
0:14:13 > 0:14:15regardless of what's in them.
0:14:15 > 0:14:20That could have been a syringe, then, I could be facing months
0:14:20 > 0:14:25of God knows what over hepatitis or anything even worse, you know?
0:14:25 > 0:14:28And yet the person who's had a good night on a Friday night
0:14:28 > 0:14:32with their vodka, it's no concern to them, is it?
0:14:32 > 0:14:35With so much dangerous material littering the streets,
0:14:35 > 0:14:40the guys don their gloves in a bid to find out who left the bags.
0:14:40 > 0:14:42If we do find evidence, there is a set procedure.
0:14:42 > 0:14:45We try to educate the offenders first of all,
0:14:45 > 0:14:49and if they continue to offend, we have mechanisms in place
0:14:49 > 0:14:53where we can serve a notice on them, and then if they again
0:14:53 > 0:14:58fail to heed with our instructions then they can be fined £100.
0:15:00 > 0:15:04Martyn discovers something useful in amongst the debris -
0:15:04 > 0:15:07an envelope, possibly addressed to the culprit.
0:15:07 > 0:15:09Yeah, I've got an address now.
0:15:12 > 0:15:17So what happens now is when we get an address from the waste,
0:15:17 > 0:15:19that becomes evidence,
0:15:19 > 0:15:22and you see there Martyn's taking a photograph of that waste.
0:15:22 > 0:15:26That envelope will be placed into an evidence bag and then be used
0:15:26 > 0:15:29then in the subsequent inquiry to trace the offender.
0:15:31 > 0:15:34If found, the offender will be invited to an interview
0:15:34 > 0:15:38to be advised on the correct way to dispose of household waste.
0:15:39 > 0:15:43So hopefully, there will be one less fly-tipper for Paul and Martyn
0:15:43 > 0:15:46to deal with in their quest to clean up the streets of Llanelli.
0:15:50 > 0:15:52And while they've been in the Back Lanes,
0:15:52 > 0:15:55they've received some vital information - the person who
0:15:55 > 0:15:58reported the waste thinks they spotted the fly-tipper.
0:15:58 > 0:16:01A member of public has witnessed the vehicle,
0:16:01 > 0:16:03so he's recorded the number plate.
0:16:03 > 0:16:06He's not prepared to give a statement due to obvious reasons,
0:16:06 > 0:16:09where he could face repercussions.
0:16:09 > 0:16:14But for us it's an easy way to start asking questions, yeah?
0:16:14 > 0:16:16It turns out the vehicle that was seen
0:16:16 > 0:16:18may belong to a regular offender.
0:16:18 > 0:16:20Paul and Martyn will interview the man,
0:16:20 > 0:16:23and if he is responsible they will prosecute.
0:16:27 > 0:16:31Later, we'll find out how Paul and Martyn are using the latest
0:16:31 > 0:16:35technology in their battle to catch the antisocial fly-tippers.
0:16:41 > 0:16:44I've been out on a street patrol of my own to find out
0:16:44 > 0:16:47what bothers you about Britain today.
0:16:47 > 0:16:50Heather, tell me what you've witnessed that you think is
0:16:50 > 0:16:53- antisocial?- People come up to you and say, "Can I have a cigarette,"
0:16:53 > 0:16:56or, "Can I have money?" I don't know.
0:16:56 > 0:16:59And I don't like all that sort of begging.
0:16:59 > 0:17:02- Does that happen a lot? - Happens to me quite a lot.
0:17:02 > 0:17:04OK. What other things really annoy you?
0:17:04 > 0:17:08Swiping stuff from graveyards.
0:17:08 > 0:17:12My friend went to visit her mother in her graveyard yesterday
0:17:12 > 0:17:14and they'd actually nicked the bowl,
0:17:14 > 0:17:17- the vase that she'd put her flowers in.- Really?
0:17:17 > 0:17:18Serious.
0:17:18 > 0:17:20- And the flowers as well? - And the flowers as well.
0:17:20 > 0:17:23And the chances are, they are either going to give those flowers
0:17:23 > 0:17:25to someone or perhaps, I don't know, sell them?
0:17:25 > 0:17:28Or put them on another grave. Sell them?
0:17:28 > 0:17:29I don't know how old the flowers were!
0:17:29 > 0:17:31I didn't think about that.
0:17:31 > 0:17:33- Pinch flowers off one grave to put on another?!- Another grave!
0:17:33 > 0:17:35It's possible, isn't it?
0:17:35 > 0:17:37- It doesn't get much lower, does it? - No!
0:17:37 > 0:17:40I'll let you get back. It's your lunch break, isn't it?
0:17:40 > 0:17:42- Yes. Thank you.- Thanks, lovely. Cheers, bye-bye.
0:17:42 > 0:17:44- Zac, that's crazy hair! - Cheers. Thanks a lot.
0:17:44 > 0:17:46- I really appreciate that.- I love it! Full respect.
0:17:46 > 0:17:48- Nice to meet you. How you doing? - Nice to meet you too, Lily.- Hi.
0:17:48 > 0:17:50Now, tell me what might bug you two about people
0:17:50 > 0:17:52and antisocial behaviour.
0:17:52 > 0:17:56Sure. One that occurs most is drinking in public.
0:17:56 > 0:18:00- Yeah.- It's a real shame. It's not good for the neighbourhood.
0:18:00 > 0:18:03and it's a real issue we need to counter from that aspect.
0:18:03 > 0:18:07- OK. What about something you find disgusting?- Peeing.
0:18:07 > 0:18:09- Yeah.- They've tried to cut it out.
0:18:09 > 0:18:12I have noticed in London they have these things that you can go up
0:18:12 > 0:18:15against, but you still find it in small towns like this
0:18:15 > 0:18:18with people going around, and it's not good for people walking past
0:18:18 > 0:18:20from that aspect, if you have your kids or something.
0:18:20 > 0:18:23And that actually is against the law.
0:18:23 > 0:18:24You will get fined for it if you get caught.
0:18:24 > 0:18:27Exactly, and you still find people sort of want to go and breach it.
0:18:27 > 0:18:29So that's a bit of a shame.
0:18:29 > 0:18:31- Zac...- Nice to meet you.
0:18:31 > 0:18:33Lovely to meet you, and you too. Have a lovely day.
0:18:33 > 0:18:35- You take care.- Cheers, bye-bye.
0:18:37 > 0:18:41One type of crime we don't hear very much about is rural theft,
0:18:41 > 0:18:43but it's becoming increasingly common.
0:18:43 > 0:18:47We're not just talking about a few scoundrels scrumping a few apples,
0:18:47 > 0:18:50but organised criminals who are using highly-sophisticated methods
0:18:50 > 0:18:52to steal from our farmers.
0:18:52 > 0:18:55But now some farmers are taking the criminals on
0:18:55 > 0:18:57with some hi-tech tactics of their own.
0:18:58 > 0:19:03Hidden amongst the hedgerows of England's green and pleasant land...
0:19:04 > 0:19:07..a dangerous new breed of antisocial creature is lurking.
0:19:09 > 0:19:11A dark February night,
0:19:11 > 0:19:14and two people are caught on camera in a Lincolnshire farmyard.
0:19:14 > 0:19:18It was 1:30 in the morning, and it was two people.
0:19:18 > 0:19:21But these two visitors to the Dobneys' farm are not there
0:19:21 > 0:19:22to enjoy the view.
0:19:24 > 0:19:28They pull on this wire to try and pull the CCTV down.
0:19:28 > 0:19:32They fetch a long metal bar, then they start hitting it to the point
0:19:32 > 0:19:34where they actually get the camera to dangle down.
0:19:37 > 0:19:41The smaller of the two goes on the shoulders of the bigger of the two,
0:19:41 > 0:19:44and they actually, by going shoulder on top,
0:19:44 > 0:19:46get hold of the camera and manage to wrench it down.
0:19:46 > 0:19:49And that's when the footage goes blank.
0:19:49 > 0:19:52The incident deeply shocked farmer Neil Dobney,
0:19:52 > 0:19:54especially because most of the time
0:19:54 > 0:19:58the farm is run by his elderly father, Ralph, who's in poor health.
0:19:58 > 0:20:02I mean, they were waving iron bars around to get the cameras off.
0:20:02 > 0:20:04If it had happened to be the same time that my father
0:20:04 > 0:20:08had walked down the yard, who knows what would have happened?
0:20:08 > 0:20:10Nothing of value was stolen that night,
0:20:10 > 0:20:13but Neil believes these weren't just vandals.
0:20:13 > 0:20:16They were definitely here, having a look around
0:20:16 > 0:20:19and assessing what they could come back for, or planning what
0:20:19 > 0:20:23we'd call a big job, and I think we were the next hit.
0:20:23 > 0:20:25It's a terrifying thought.
0:20:25 > 0:20:29Thieves so organised they raid a property twice -
0:20:29 > 0:20:31once to destroy the security systems,
0:20:31 > 0:20:34and then again to take whatever they want.
0:20:34 > 0:20:37And this is just the latest in a long string of crimes
0:20:37 > 0:20:38to hit the farm.
0:20:39 > 0:20:42I think in the last, I'd say, two to five years,
0:20:42 > 0:20:45particularly on this farm, we've seen more and more hits.
0:20:45 > 0:20:50And it got to a point where you could almost set your watch,
0:20:50 > 0:20:52that you were going to get hit every three months.
0:20:52 > 0:20:57Thieves targeting the Dobneys' farm have stolen metal for scrap,
0:20:57 > 0:20:59tools from sheds, batteries,
0:20:59 > 0:21:01even building materials
0:21:01 > 0:21:04and every loss is at a cost.
0:21:04 > 0:21:07When they damaged the cameras, it was nearly £500 worth of damage.
0:21:07 > 0:21:10Insurance is increasing the excess because of all the crimes,
0:21:10 > 0:21:13so you can't claim for these smaller crimes,
0:21:13 > 0:21:16so it's all coming out of your own pocket.
0:21:17 > 0:21:21What's more, these attacks are taking an emotional toll.
0:21:21 > 0:21:25I think most people in this rural area will tell you,
0:21:25 > 0:21:28early hours of the morning,
0:21:28 > 0:21:31you don't feel safe walking round your own yard,
0:21:31 > 0:21:35because you never know who's around the corner, with an iron bar,
0:21:35 > 0:21:37who may be there to take a battery
0:21:37 > 0:21:40that they're going to get £5 for down at the scrapyard.
0:21:40 > 0:21:45Across the country, farm theft is becoming a major problem.
0:21:45 > 0:21:50Last year, almost £44 million was stolen from the farmers who
0:21:50 > 0:21:51put food on our tables.
0:21:55 > 0:21:58Over in neighbouring Cambridgeshire,
0:21:58 > 0:22:03PC Richard Moore is all too aware of the increase in this kind of crime.
0:22:06 > 0:22:08It's generally not your common petty crime
0:22:08 > 0:22:12that you'd find in the cities, where it's opportunistic.
0:22:12 > 0:22:16With rural crime, it generally tends to be a lot more targeted,
0:22:16 > 0:22:20and, as such, premises are put under surveillance by criminals
0:22:20 > 0:22:22before they go about their business.
0:22:22 > 0:22:26Our biggest problem is things like theft of plant material -
0:22:26 > 0:22:29tractors, combine harvesters, that sort of thing,
0:22:29 > 0:22:31along with the theft of red diesel
0:22:31 > 0:22:34and its subsequent sale on the black market as well.
0:22:34 > 0:22:37Red diesel is supplied to farmers very cheaply,
0:22:37 > 0:22:39for exclusive agricultural use.
0:22:39 > 0:22:43Thieves who steal it can sell it on the black market.
0:22:43 > 0:22:47This crime wave is spreading fear amongst the rural population.
0:22:47 > 0:22:50What you can generally find is that a lot of the people who
0:22:50 > 0:22:53live on the farms are relatively elderly as well
0:22:53 > 0:22:57and it certainly appears to me that they can be quite isolated
0:22:57 > 0:23:01and feel victimised and, you know, just kind of feel a bit helpless,
0:23:01 > 0:23:05really, because they're so far out of the way from everybody else around.
0:23:05 > 0:23:08But the feeling of danger on a remote farm does not just
0:23:08 > 0:23:10affect the elderly.
0:23:10 > 0:23:12A younger generation of farmers like James Peck
0:23:12 > 0:23:14feel every bit as vulnerable.
0:23:14 > 0:23:16People are afraid.
0:23:16 > 0:23:19Because five of us live here on the farm,
0:23:19 > 0:23:22when you hear noises, or the alarms go off, there is fear.
0:23:22 > 0:23:25And someone's got to go out there
0:23:25 > 0:23:27and hopefully not come across five men.
0:23:27 > 0:23:31James's state-of-the-art set-up in Cambridgeshire
0:23:31 > 0:23:33requires copious amounts of diesel.
0:23:33 > 0:23:35This made him a target for a brazen attack.
0:23:38 > 0:23:40They came at about two in the morning.
0:23:41 > 0:23:44The lorries were parked down just below us
0:23:44 > 0:23:47and the individuals concerned came across the fields.
0:23:47 > 0:23:50Like the raid on Neil Dobney's farm,
0:23:50 > 0:23:53this attack seemed highly organised.
0:23:53 > 0:23:56The intruders came equipped with 4x4s and fuel pumps.
0:23:56 > 0:23:58They were after just one thing -
0:23:58 > 0:24:00as much diesel as they could get away with.
0:24:00 > 0:24:04There were five of them, they were putting pumps onto the lorries
0:24:04 > 0:24:07and they were drawing it back to the central tanks.
0:24:07 > 0:24:11The 4x4s drove away from the farm to unload the stolen fuel
0:24:11 > 0:24:13into a waiting tanker truck.
0:24:13 > 0:24:17Then, they came back for more and more.
0:24:18 > 0:24:21They were very organised and very quick.
0:24:21 > 0:24:25We believe they emptied 5,000 litres
0:24:25 > 0:24:27and the whole operation was under an hour.
0:24:27 > 0:24:335,000 litres - that's enough to fill up about 100 average-size cars.
0:24:33 > 0:24:37The thieves took it all before James even realised anyone
0:24:37 > 0:24:38was on his land.
0:24:41 > 0:24:44I was absolutely amazed that they were able to come in
0:24:44 > 0:24:45and commit that crime.
0:24:45 > 0:24:48I thought we'd put enough security in place to prevent it,
0:24:48 > 0:24:53but they must have been fully aware of everything we'd done
0:24:53 > 0:24:56and the knowledge of our site was extraordinary.
0:24:57 > 0:25:00Although James had some CCTV cameras in place,
0:25:00 > 0:25:02the images he recorded of the crime
0:25:02 > 0:25:06were not good enough to identify the perpetrators.
0:25:06 > 0:25:09Now, along with many other farmers, he's fighting back
0:25:09 > 0:25:13with security systems that wouldn't look out of place in a bank.
0:25:15 > 0:25:18We are being watched effectively where we're stood now.
0:25:18 > 0:25:21If anybody was to walk around in here, the alarms would go off.
0:25:21 > 0:25:23We've put up 18 security cameras, CCTV,
0:25:23 > 0:25:25which are controlled from my iPhone.
0:25:25 > 0:25:30James also now has multiple defences against intruders,
0:25:30 > 0:25:33remote monitoring of his fuel and fertiliser tanks
0:25:33 > 0:25:36and electronic data-tagging for his expensive equipment.
0:25:36 > 0:25:40You are just trying to make your farm more difficult to break into
0:25:40 > 0:25:43than another's, as awful as that may sound.
0:25:43 > 0:25:46But along with these hi-tech deterrents,
0:25:46 > 0:25:48James is teaming up with police
0:25:48 > 0:25:51to help develop new crime-prevention strategies.
0:25:51 > 0:25:55Local Police Community Support Officer Carly Freed
0:25:55 > 0:25:58is South Cambridgeshire's business watch expert.
0:25:58 > 0:26:01She realised that with crimes like these on the increase,
0:26:01 > 0:26:03it was time for a new approach.
0:26:03 > 0:26:06Because of their business type, the nature of their world is
0:26:06 > 0:26:10so different to what police officers normally deal with
0:26:10 > 0:26:13and I don't feel that perhaps it's been as well understood as it could.
0:26:13 > 0:26:17So, myself and a colleague, we got together
0:26:17 > 0:26:21and we arranged some training sessions for police officers.
0:26:21 > 0:26:25So, we wanted to borrow one of James's tractors.
0:26:25 > 0:26:28James instead said that we could borrow his farm.
0:26:28 > 0:26:32The police now take their teams on to James's farm to help educate
0:26:32 > 0:26:35officers on the impact of these types of crimes.
0:26:35 > 0:26:38So, we had police officers come here and we effectively took them
0:26:38 > 0:26:41around the farm, showed them the tractors and the machinery
0:26:41 > 0:26:44and the problems we were having and the value of the equipment
0:26:44 > 0:26:46and I believe they got a lot out of it.
0:26:46 > 0:26:51Today, Carly and PC Richard Moore are visiting James to check out
0:26:51 > 0:26:53the new security he has put in place.
0:26:53 > 0:26:57So, we're effectively funnelling, hopefully, the crime to an entrance
0:26:57 > 0:27:00if they get in, and we'll be able to see them.
0:27:00 > 0:27:02Do you feel from a personal-safety point of view
0:27:02 > 0:27:05- that that was a benefit? - I feel better, much better.
0:27:05 > 0:27:09Together, police and farmers are determined to stamp out
0:27:09 > 0:27:10this antisocial thievery
0:27:10 > 0:27:13and leave the farmers to get on with their vital work.
0:27:15 > 0:27:19And any thieves who still think that remote farms aren't moving
0:27:19 > 0:27:21with the times would be wrong.
0:27:21 > 0:27:23Neil Dobney has taken to social media
0:27:23 > 0:27:27to track down the people who attacked his father's farm.
0:27:28 > 0:27:33So I decided, spur of the moment, to post four of the images,
0:27:33 > 0:27:35the still images from the CCTV footage,
0:27:35 > 0:27:39hoping that if ten of my friends could share that image,
0:27:39 > 0:27:43then potentially, with 100 possible friends on each of their pages,
0:27:43 > 0:27:44that could hit 1,000 people.
0:27:44 > 0:27:471,000 local people and if it's a local person that's done it,
0:27:47 > 0:27:50hopefully we'll be able to identify the person.
0:27:50 > 0:27:51For me,
0:27:51 > 0:27:54it was satisfying knowing that I'd done something to help my father.
0:27:54 > 0:27:58If we can stop one of them, then I think we've achieved something.
0:28:03 > 0:28:04If there's one thing
0:28:04 > 0:28:07that's proved successful in the fight against crime,
0:28:07 > 0:28:09it's the neighbourhood and community schemes
0:28:09 > 0:28:11that encourage people to band together
0:28:11 > 0:28:14and keep an eye out for criminal activity in their area.
0:28:14 > 0:28:19And you're never too young or too old to get that message across.
0:28:22 > 0:28:25Antisocial behaviour can blight the landscape,
0:28:25 > 0:28:27causing communities to live in fear.
0:28:33 > 0:28:35Perry Common in Birmingham
0:28:35 > 0:28:37might not look like a place where that's the case,
0:28:37 > 0:28:43but it was once an area beset by crime, burglary and fly-tipping.
0:28:44 > 0:28:47Residents like 93-year-old Mary Harvey
0:28:47 > 0:28:49remember well the dark times,
0:28:49 > 0:28:52when houses being redeveloped were boarded up
0:28:52 > 0:28:54and antisocial behaviour moved in.
0:28:56 > 0:29:02The whole area of Perry Common, it was nasty living here.
0:29:03 > 0:29:06Everyone you met had got something horrible.
0:29:08 > 0:29:10My husband and I felt very vulnerable.
0:29:10 > 0:29:13Mary had to face the terrifying experience
0:29:13 > 0:29:14of being burgled three times.
0:29:16 > 0:29:18We used to go out dancing a lot and, you know,
0:29:18 > 0:29:21"Oh, is the house going to still be all right when we get back?"
0:29:21 > 0:29:23We were broken into.
0:29:23 > 0:29:27The first time, a lot of things were broken the first time.
0:29:29 > 0:29:32Then one local resident decided that the community needed to
0:29:32 > 0:29:36pull together to get rid of this antisocial menace.
0:29:36 > 0:29:39Community Watch is my baby, I suppose.
0:29:39 > 0:29:44It was set up really to allay the fear of crime
0:29:44 > 0:29:46when the houses started to be demolished.
0:29:46 > 0:29:49I suppose, along with me, people were complaining that the police
0:29:49 > 0:29:52weren't standing on every street corner for 24 hours a day,
0:29:52 > 0:29:53and that's what they wanted,
0:29:53 > 0:29:56and we were never going to get that because it wasn't possible
0:29:56 > 0:30:00so I took the, I suppose, leap of faith
0:30:00 > 0:30:03and said, "Come on, let's do it ourselves."
0:30:04 > 0:30:05OK, guys.
0:30:05 > 0:30:08Wow, we've got a lot of people out tonight. Thanks ever so much.
0:30:08 > 0:30:11Now, Linda and the Community Watch members regularly gather
0:30:11 > 0:30:15to patrol the streets, visiting over 300 homes on their watch.
0:30:15 > 0:30:18Getting involved has given a boost to some of the more
0:30:18 > 0:30:20vulnerable members of the community.
0:30:20 > 0:30:25When I lost my husband, I was lost.
0:30:25 > 0:30:26We'd been married nearly 60 years.
0:30:26 > 0:30:29Linda stopped me one day and said,
0:30:29 > 0:30:31"Mary, why don't you come and join Community Watch?"
0:30:31 > 0:30:33It had been going a month then,
0:30:33 > 0:30:36so I came out and thoroughly enjoyed it.
0:30:36 > 0:30:39The Community Watch team aren't there to replace the police,
0:30:39 > 0:30:41but keeping their eyes out
0:30:41 > 0:30:43and ears to the ground for crime is vital.
0:30:43 > 0:30:46I always say we're the missing link between residents
0:30:46 > 0:30:47and neighbourhood policing.
0:30:47 > 0:30:50I think there's a relationship built here.
0:30:50 > 0:30:53I think that's the difference.
0:30:53 > 0:30:56- Hello, Brenda. - Hello, Brenda.
0:30:56 > 0:31:00Oh! Don't take photographs of me! I'm in me nightie!
0:31:01 > 0:31:05'It's the fear of crime that upsets people'
0:31:05 > 0:31:08but people are not thinking that way now.
0:31:08 > 0:31:13We're feeling safe in the community, which we're very, very proud of.
0:31:13 > 0:31:17The police increasingly recognise the value of working hand in hand
0:31:17 > 0:31:20with residents to keep antisocial behaviour at bay.
0:31:20 > 0:31:23It just builds a good, strong link-up with the community.
0:31:23 > 0:31:26It allows us to get a clear understanding
0:31:26 > 0:31:28of what is concerning the community.
0:31:28 > 0:31:32It allows us to get an understanding quickly of individuals that might
0:31:32 > 0:31:35be responsible for local issues and concerns.
0:31:35 > 0:31:38It allows us to straightaway develop a working strategy as partners
0:31:38 > 0:31:40to target that behaviour.
0:31:40 > 0:31:44Neighbourhood Watch schemes have sprung up all over the country,
0:31:44 > 0:31:48with police and residents working together to keep their areas safe.
0:31:48 > 0:31:52And in Romford, Essex, the Met Police are starting them young.
0:31:53 > 0:31:56Right, police cadets, my name is Sue. This is my colleague Ben.
0:31:56 > 0:31:59We are from Romford Town Neighbourhood Policing Team.
0:31:59 > 0:32:02What we are going to do tonight is go to two residential streets.
0:32:02 > 0:32:04We're going to knock on the doors
0:32:04 > 0:32:07and encourage neighbours to join up to the Neighbourhood Watch teams.
0:32:07 > 0:32:11In front of you, you have a clipboard with some sign-up sheets underneath.
0:32:11 > 0:32:13You need to encourage them to join
0:32:13 > 0:32:17so you need to be enthusiastic, you need to smile at the people
0:32:17 > 0:32:18and do what you normally do.
0:32:22 > 0:32:25In behind the other pair. Yeah, pairs, there we go.
0:32:25 > 0:32:29These police cadets need to do ten hours' volunteering a month
0:32:29 > 0:32:32to show their commitment to policing,
0:32:32 > 0:32:35and that starts with helping get residents involved.
0:32:35 > 0:32:38'Priority crime in Romford is burglary.'
0:32:38 > 0:32:41Most of the residents are worried about that, so joining up
0:32:41 > 0:32:45to the Neighbourhood Watch allows us to give them crime-prevention advice
0:32:45 > 0:32:48in regards of burglary, we can let them know what's going on in
0:32:48 > 0:32:51their road, we can let them know what is going on in surrounding roads.
0:32:53 > 0:32:56Good evening. We're from the Romford Town Neighbourhood Policing Team
0:32:56 > 0:32:59and wondered if you'd like to join the Neighbourhood Watch scheme.
0:32:59 > 0:33:02- Yes, I would.- All you have to do is prove your name...
0:33:02 > 0:33:04'We were out one Sunday, and when we came back'
0:33:04 > 0:33:07somebody had broken in and stolen some jewellery.
0:33:08 > 0:33:11We never got it back.
0:33:11 > 0:33:14When you go into people's houses, you hear about people getting
0:33:14 > 0:33:18burgled and stuff like that. You feel like you're helping people
0:33:18 > 0:33:21by giving them that crime-prevention advice.
0:33:21 > 0:33:23My daughter's house got the windows broken at the back
0:33:23 > 0:33:25and completely ransacked.
0:33:25 > 0:33:30Anything that will help is good by me, yeah.
0:33:30 > 0:33:35We actually got the garage broke into when we first moved here
0:33:35 > 0:33:39and everything, like me motorbikes and that, got taken.
0:33:39 > 0:33:43Do you have an e-mail address you could put on the sign-up form?
0:33:43 > 0:33:46'Two things, really. One is, you get to know your neighbours.'
0:33:46 > 0:33:48From a financial perspective,
0:33:48 > 0:33:51it is good for insurance purposes, so I save money.
0:33:51 > 0:33:52Right, cadets, we're finished now
0:33:52 > 0:33:54so if we can all make our way back to the station?
0:33:57 > 0:34:00Job done, the cadets have helped another community get connected
0:34:00 > 0:34:02to their local police.
0:34:04 > 0:34:06I'm not sure they really understand
0:34:06 > 0:34:08the full impact of the job they are doing,
0:34:08 > 0:34:11but it is certainly a worthwhile job from our perspective.
0:34:14 > 0:34:18To be able to communicate so easily now with all these residents
0:34:18 > 0:34:21really is going to make our life so much easier.
0:34:21 > 0:34:23If we have a burglary down that street now,
0:34:23 > 0:34:27we can, just by sending an e-mail out to a co-ordinator,
0:34:27 > 0:34:30can feed all that information out to all the residents.
0:34:32 > 0:34:35And back in Birmingham, Community Watch veteran Linda
0:34:35 > 0:34:37can vouch for the huge difference
0:34:37 > 0:34:41schemes like hers have made to the residents' quality of life.
0:34:41 > 0:34:46Some research was done by the police as to the reduction in crime
0:34:46 > 0:34:53in Perry Common, almost since Community Watch had started, really,
0:34:53 > 0:34:56and burglaries in Perry Common had reduced by 46%,
0:34:56 > 0:35:01car crime by 26% and assaults by 9%.
0:35:02 > 0:35:04It's not just us that's done that,
0:35:04 > 0:35:07but I'd like to think we've played an integral part in that.
0:35:13 > 0:35:17Antisocial behaviour, be it intimidation, excessive noise,
0:35:17 > 0:35:19fly-tipping, graffiti or vandalism,
0:35:19 > 0:35:23is just not what you or I should expect to have to put up with.
0:35:23 > 0:35:27But there are people all over the UK whose lives are ruined by it,
0:35:27 > 0:35:31so it's just as well there are people we can turn to.
0:35:32 > 0:35:33We're on the front line
0:35:33 > 0:35:36with the highly skilled teams of council workers...
0:35:36 > 0:35:38It's my job to get the evidence.
0:35:38 > 0:35:40We'll find her and she'll pay.
0:35:41 > 0:35:42..police officers...
0:35:42 > 0:35:45I saw you urinate on the pavement.
0:35:45 > 0:35:47..and volunteers who are committed
0:35:47 > 0:35:50to keeping our streets safe and clean
0:35:50 > 0:35:53and taking on our antisocial battles on a daily basis,
0:35:53 > 0:35:56to make sure our lives are not blighted
0:35:56 > 0:35:58by other people's bad behaviour.
0:36:00 > 0:36:02This is Street Patrol UK.
0:36:05 > 0:36:09Earlier, enforcement officers Paul Morris and Martin Jones
0:36:09 > 0:36:13from Carmarthenshire County Council were out on the trail of fly-tippers
0:36:13 > 0:36:17who dumped shocking toxic waste all over the county.
0:36:19 > 0:36:22People drive in, dump whatever they have in the back of their van
0:36:22 > 0:36:25and off they go with no consequences, no witnesses.
0:36:25 > 0:36:27Convenient for them, you know?
0:36:27 > 0:36:31The council is determined to get tough on this sort of antisocial
0:36:31 > 0:36:33and illegal behaviour,
0:36:33 > 0:36:36which costs them a quarter of a million pounds a year to deal with.
0:36:36 > 0:36:39So they have introduced a clever technique
0:36:39 > 0:36:43designed to catch fly-tippers red-handed - hidden cameras.
0:36:43 > 0:36:47We are trying to be one step ahead of fly-tippers now.
0:36:47 > 0:36:50Because they don't tend to leave evidence within the waste.
0:36:50 > 0:36:53What it is is a normal trade refuse bin,
0:36:53 > 0:36:58but inside it there's two cameras, which are covertly hidden.
0:36:58 > 0:37:00It depends on the application.
0:37:00 > 0:37:01The scenario will dictate
0:37:01 > 0:37:04whether this goes in or another piece of equipment.
0:37:04 > 0:37:08This is just a tool in the toolbox, ready to be deployed if needed.
0:37:08 > 0:37:11This is another device.
0:37:11 > 0:37:13Similar sort of technique.
0:37:13 > 0:37:15There's a battery source at the bottom,
0:37:15 > 0:37:18and then there is a camera which is basically there,
0:37:18 > 0:37:19which you can't see.
0:37:21 > 0:37:24This hi-tech gadgetry has had some great results.
0:37:24 > 0:37:27The secret cameras have been used over 100 times,
0:37:27 > 0:37:31filming at hot spots in residential areas and out in the countryside.
0:37:33 > 0:37:34The idea is simple.
0:37:34 > 0:37:36The council's fly-tipper trap
0:37:36 > 0:37:38is left wherever they suspect dumpers may strike.
0:37:38 > 0:37:42And without even realising, the criminals are caught in the act.
0:37:44 > 0:37:47We've caught a number of people who are committing offences.
0:37:47 > 0:37:51We've ranged from people throwing out of vehicles,
0:37:51 > 0:37:56we've caught fly-tippers there, commercial people there.
0:37:56 > 0:38:00We're trying to gather the evidence to prosecute people.
0:38:00 > 0:38:04CCTV cameras have been so successful that the council has started
0:38:04 > 0:38:08looking at using other recording equipment in their investigations.
0:38:08 > 0:38:10This is the other device that we use.
0:38:12 > 0:38:13It's a body-cam, in effect,
0:38:13 > 0:38:16and as you can see on there, it's highly marked "CCTV"
0:38:16 > 0:38:18and how it operates is, pull the switch down,
0:38:18 > 0:38:20it now becomes live
0:38:20 > 0:38:22with video and audio.
0:38:22 > 0:38:26This has become very, very useful when dealing with offenders.
0:38:30 > 0:38:33It was used to interview this 26-year-old man, suspected
0:38:33 > 0:38:37of dumping a large quantity of asbestos sheets in a river.
0:38:38 > 0:38:41- Your words and actions are being recorded, OK?- Sure.
0:38:41 > 0:38:45- We've had a report of asbestos being tipped back in November.- Right.
0:38:45 > 0:38:48At first, he denies all knowledge.
0:38:48 > 0:38:51I haven't done anything with no asbestos anyway.
0:38:51 > 0:38:53But once he's shown a photo of the vehicle
0:38:53 > 0:38:57and told there's an eyewitness testimony, his memory is jogged.
0:38:57 > 0:39:00I might have been in the truck at the time, whatever,
0:39:00 > 0:39:01but I haven't done anything.
0:39:03 > 0:39:08And he recalls that some asbestos DID fall into the river after all.
0:39:08 > 0:39:11And it all come off the back of the truck into the river.
0:39:11 > 0:39:14Following this interview, the man pleaded guilty
0:39:14 > 0:39:17and was fined £350 for his part in this crime.
0:39:22 > 0:39:26So, for any thoughtless antisocial criminals out there
0:39:26 > 0:39:29who might be thinking of dumping waste - watch out.
0:39:30 > 0:39:32Someone could be watching you.
0:39:40 > 0:39:42Countryside living.
0:39:42 > 0:39:43Getting away from the big smoke,
0:39:43 > 0:39:47waking up to the smell of fresh air and the sound of songbirds.
0:39:47 > 0:39:49Sounds idyllic, doesn't it?
0:39:49 > 0:39:52But what if that tranquillity was suddenly turned upside down?
0:40:00 > 0:40:01In our last series,
0:40:01 > 0:40:04we featured villagers from Meriden in the West Midlands,
0:40:04 > 0:40:06some of whom told us their lives were turned upside-down
0:40:06 > 0:40:09with the arrival of a group of travellers who bought
0:40:09 > 0:40:13this greenbelt land right on the edge of their picturesque village.
0:40:16 > 0:40:18The travellers were trying to develop the land
0:40:18 > 0:40:20into a residential site,
0:40:20 > 0:40:23which some of the residents claimed was disruptive.
0:40:26 > 0:40:28To find, suddenly, one Bank Holiday Friday,
0:40:28 > 0:40:30that tranquillity, that amenity,
0:40:30 > 0:40:33is literally being devastated and smashed
0:40:33 > 0:40:39by bulldozers, earth-moving vehicles, is hugely traumatic.
0:40:39 > 0:40:42The travellers denied this noise was in any way excessive.
0:40:42 > 0:40:45Some villagers were also concerned the travellers were breaching
0:40:45 > 0:40:48planning regulations by commencing work before
0:40:48 > 0:40:51they had planning permission, which they applied for retrospectively.
0:40:51 > 0:40:56It was about planning and developing on a piece of greenbelt land.
0:40:56 > 0:41:00If anyone could come along and just buy an agricultural field
0:41:00 > 0:41:04and start developing it into accommodation...
0:41:05 > 0:41:08Not right, it's not right. You've got anarchy.
0:41:11 > 0:41:13Some of the villagers began petitioning the council
0:41:13 > 0:41:15and formed an action group -
0:41:15 > 0:41:19Meriden Residents Against Inappropriate Development, or RAID.
0:41:19 > 0:41:20They created a human blockade
0:41:20 > 0:41:25to stop lorries delivering onto the site, led by David McGrath.
0:41:27 > 0:41:29This is where the residents' protest site was.
0:41:29 > 0:41:34We had a brazier there, some flimsy awning over there
0:41:34 > 0:41:40and this was maintained on a 24-hour basis for three years.
0:41:40 > 0:41:42The 24-hour vigil led to tensions
0:41:42 > 0:41:46and some villagers alleging that they were being intimidated
0:41:46 > 0:41:47by the travellers.
0:41:47 > 0:41:50These claims have all been strongly denied by the travellers,
0:41:50 > 0:41:54who also denied that they caused any damage to the village.
0:41:54 > 0:41:56Over the next three years,
0:41:56 > 0:42:00we've fought 20 legal planning and technical decisions
0:42:00 > 0:42:02to prove that it's an inappropriate development
0:42:02 > 0:42:04and it shouldn't have been allowed.
0:42:04 > 0:42:08That's cost £90,000 of the community's money.
0:42:08 > 0:42:14It's taken three years of 24-hour protesting.
0:42:14 > 0:42:16It's involved visits to Westminster,
0:42:16 > 0:42:20the European Parliament, the council and the high courts,
0:42:20 > 0:42:22all to protect what we cherish.
0:42:28 > 0:42:30The travellers lost every appeal
0:42:30 > 0:42:34and finally left the site after they were unable to develop it.
0:42:38 > 0:42:41But this year, Solihull Council, who recognise
0:42:41 > 0:42:45the accommodation needs of Gypsies and Irish travellers in the borough,
0:42:45 > 0:42:48has provided them with access to a new site.
0:42:48 > 0:42:50Let's hope everyone is happy.
0:42:55 > 0:42:58Well, that's your lot for today. Thanks for watching.