Ripon residents who witness, or know about violent, anti-social and other criminal activity in the city, are being urged to contact Crimestoppers.

The charity, which is independent of the police, wants to overcome a ‘wall of silence’ that is stopping some criminals from being brought to justice.

It guarantees 100 percent anonymity to anyone with information that can help to crack Ripon’s persistent crime problem, as highlighted in a Stray Ferret report in December.

Crimestoppers is encouraging residents, who may not want to speak directly to the police, to call its confidential freephone number 0800 555 111 or visit Crimestopper-uk-org and complete a simple anonymous online form.

The charity said the community has a vital role to play in helping to stop crimes such as burglary, theft from cars, vans and shops, drug dealing, weapons and violence, but added:

“People know those who regularly bring crime to the area, but may not want to speak directly to the police. Crimestoppers is here to help and offers a safe and trusted anonymous option.”

‘Fearful of retribution’

Gemma Gibbs, Yorkshire regional manager for the charity, said:

“Some people are fearful of retribution, and that’s probably the main reason why people contact us. They’re scared that if somebody found out that it was them that reported an individual or a particular crime that has happened, they’re fearful of what might happen to them or what might happen to their family.

“We want to make sure that people who are fearful for that reason know that they can still do something and they can still report that information. But our guarantee is that they will contact us and nobody will ever know that they’ve actually reported to us. We take that information and we pass it onto the police.”

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Ms Gibbs, added:

“Last summer there were concerns around antisocial behaviour and a small number of people were really concerning the residents. A teenage boy was attacked in August last year and shopkeepers were being attacked as well.

“They don’t just impact the individuals, they can have a real impact on families and the people around them, so we want to really highlight the work that we do to let the community of Ripon know that they don’t have to stay silent. There doesn’t need to be that wall of silence and we are here for them.”

Two months before he resigned from office, former North Yorkshire Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner Philip Allott said he was confident that police had ‘got a grip’ on crime in the city, but he also spoke of the need to crack ‘the wall of silence’.

He said:

“One of the problems we have in Ripon is sometimes a wall of silence by certain families and that makes it quite difficult to apprehend people.

“The police will still get those people. It just takes a bit longer.”