Sexual predators on the prowl in Wiltshire have been warned that members of the public are now on the prowl for them. 

This is because Wiltshire Police have rolled out 'Vigilant Communities' which is a new scheme introduced to get the public working together as a community to stamp out predation.  

"We know that nearly all serious sexual offenders have carried out non-contact sexual offences such as stalking, indecent exposures and voyeurism," said Detective Inspector Troy Smith.

"We want to create 'Vigilant Communities' that can help us to gather intelligence on those individuals who make women and girls feel frightened and vulnerable. When someone becomes a victim of sexual violence, we are already too late." 

Typically, police forces see a rise in indecent exposure reports across the country around this time of year and similar to previous years, Wiltshire has received a number of reports of stranger approaches and concerning sexualised behaviour in public spaces.

These ranged in location from beauty spots to busy town centres and public transport.

To combat this, Wiltshire Police has rolled out rolling out a project called Vigilant Communities, working with Neighbourhood Policing Teams, local authorities, CCTV operators, local companies and community groups.

They will receive detailed training and advice on how to spot predatory behaviour and how best to report it.

This includes behaviours that may have already been witnessed on the street such as:
•    A sober man hanging around outside a pub, approaching drunk women, seemingly at random.
•    The same car circling around the local nightclub, youth club, school or college, or a car with male driver and passengers parked up with seemingly no reason to be there
•    An intoxicated woman being led along the street by a sober man. He has his arm around her shoulders steering her along the pavement
•    A group of men loitering outside a café or takeaway, watching, or making comments to women and girls as they pass by.

Wiltshire Police want people to report when something does not feel right to help gather intelligence on those who pose a risk of causing sexual harm in our communities.

This can be reported through the Wiltshire Police website or by calling 101, giving as much information as possible and mentioning ‘Vigilant Communities’ so that the right people receive your message.

DI Smith added: "It's a bit like a jigsaw puzzle. We are trying to collect all the pieces to complete the picture and we need everyone to help us do this. 

"If someone is assaulted, they must live on with the trauma, left to cope with feelings of shame, guilt, anger, resentment, fear, shame, isolation. 

"I would like to reassure the public that Wiltshire Police can never have too much community intelligence coming in and things may take time to develop. So, if you do not receive a response to the information you give to Vigilant Communities, please do not feel it is being ignored. It may be that more information comes in at a later date that we will be able to link together.

"We want to drive down sexual violence and make our Wiltshire streets a hostile place for predators to operate. Having vigilant guardians in our communities will make a real difference and help us keep people safe."

If you run a local company or organisation and require more information or a police force input please do contact us on the 101 number.

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