MORE THAN 25 officers from a variety of West Mercia Police units have been clamping down on cross-border crime in Wythall with representatives from other agencies.
Patrol officers, special constables, PCSOs and Safer Neighbourhood Teams were joined by representatives from the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA), the DVLA, HM Revenue & Customs, Worcestershire Regulatory Services, UK Immigration Enforcement and the Motor Insurance Bureau (MIB) on the A435, close to the border with West Midlands Police.
Operation Roland saw drivers with cars without insurance, tax or MoT, along with those driving unsafe vehicles pulled over to the base at Becketts Farm.
They were all also tested for use of illegal fuel.
By the end of the day, 20 motorists were caught with no tax, 11 with no insurance, five with no MoT and two with vehicle defects.
One driver was confirmed to have driven longer than his tacograph allowed and 16 vehicles were seized by the police – 11 for having no insurance and five for having no MoT.
A total of 41 of the vehicles were caught for multiple offences and, with some of those stopped, they had their vehicles clamped and the option of getting insurance for their vehicle or taxing it, including paying for any back-dated vehicle tax owed.
One driver had to pay £800 in back-dated tax to get his vehicle unclamped.
The operation was organised by Redditch PC Danny Fulford and Insp Sarah Corteen oversaw it.
She said: “Op Roland is a high visibility operation designed to deter criminals who may be entering the Worcestershire force area.
“Events such as this are part of our ongoing strategy to provide reassurance and to keep the local community safe from harm, as well as educating motorists who may have committed offences.
“I would like to commend PC Fulford for his efforts and dedication in organising this multi agency operation, in what has been a very successful day.”
PC Fulford said: “Today is not just about stopping people who have committed offences, the focus is on educating people and keeping other motorists safe from danger.
“I would like to thank all of our partner agencies for their involvement and support in Operation Roland.
“This includes JK Autos for their assistance with vehicle recovery and Becketts Farm for allowing us to use their facilities and refreshments.
“We look forward to conducting similar operations in the future and remain committed to tackling cross border crime across the region.”
