Traffic cop posts pic of ‘horrendous shed of a car’ stopped near Ripon

A Harrogate traffic constable has revealed photos of “a horrendous shed of a car” that was stopped by police near Ripon.

Traffic Constable David Minto said a colleague pulled over the Audi at Baldersby, near Ripon.

He then requested support from TC Minto, who said on his Twitter account:

“It wasn’t a difficult decision for me. All four tyres had defects. The rear offside in particular was in a dreadful state

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TC Minto added two different size tyres were fitted to the front axle and all the tyres were below the legal tread depth.

He added:

“It was a horrendous shed of a car. The driver has been reported and a court date looms.”

One person responded on Twitter to say Baldersby was an apt place for such an incident to occur, judging by the state of the tyres.

1 of 2 My colleague stopped this today on #A1M near #Baldersby #Ripon He requested support in relation to examination for a possible #PG9 #Prohibition It wasn’t a difficult decision for me… All four tyres had defects. The rear offside in particular was in a dreadful state … pic.twitter.com/s9zHTGDWxJ

— David Minto (@TC174_NYP) March 16, 2022

2 of 2 …Two different size tyres were fitted to the front axle and all were below the legal tread depth. It was a horrendous shed of a car. The driver has been reported and a court date looms #DangerousCondition #SaferRoads #RoadSafety #RoadsPolicing #ProtectingOtherRoadUsers pic.twitter.com/uwkjtSzL87

— David Minto (@TC174_NYP) March 16, 2022

 

Teenagers steal equipment from Spofforth primary school

Six teenagers who stole equipment from Spofforth Church of England Primary School are being hunted by police.

North Yorkshire Police is appealing for witnesses to the incident, which happened on Saturday, March 5, at 5pm.

Officers said they believed the teens attempted to break into the school on School Lane in the village, but were unsuccessful.

The suspects then broke into the school’s equipment shed, stole multiple items and caused criminal damage to school property.

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A police statement added:

“We are requesting the public’s assistance to help identify suspects in relation to the incident. Five of the suspects have been described as teenage boys and one of the suspects has been described as a teenage girl.

“Anyone with information that could assist the investigation should contact North Yorkshire Police on 101, select option 2, and ask for PC Fleming. 

“You can also email ethan.fleming@northyorkshire.police.uk. Please quote reference number 12220039590.”

Police identify man who performed public sex act in Harrogate

North Yorkshire Police says it has identified a man who performed a sex act in Starbeck.

The police issued an appeal yesterday to identify the man, who was captured on CCTV.

The incident happened on Saturday, January 29.

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Police appeal after ducks stolen in Hampsthwaite

Police have appealed for information after five call ducks were stolen in Hampsthwaite.

Officers said the theft happened on Swincliffe Lane in the village when a secure pen which was keeping the ducks was accessed.

North Yorkshire Police said the ducks were stolen during the evening between March 2 and 3, 2022.

A police statement added:

“Police are appealing for anyone who may have any information or had noticed any suspicious activity in that area at the alleged times of the thefts to make contact with ourselves.

“If you have any information we ask that you contact PC 46 Brendon Frith on 101 and select option 2 or alternatively by email: Brendon.Frith@northyorkshire.police.uk Please quote reference number 12220037836.”

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Police issue CCTV pics of 6 people after Harrogate assault

*Update* – North Yorkshire Police has now identified the six individuals in the CCTV pictures and they are assisting officers with their investigation.

Police have issued CCTV images of six people – three men and three women, they would like to speak to following an assault in Harrogate.

The incident took place in the early hours of the morning on Sunday, February 13 at an unnamed bar on Cheltenham Parade.

A North Yorkshire Police press release tonight said:

“The incident involved a large group of people who were involved in an altercation, which resulted in a number of people in the bar being assaulted and receiving injuries.

“Despite enquiries with neighbouring police forces, the identity of the people captured in the CCTV images remains outstanding.

“Therefore, detectives from Harrogate criminal investigation department are asking members of the public to get in touch if they recognise the people in the images, as they believe they hold important information which will help the investigation.”

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Police urged anyone who recognises the people in the images, or who has any information regarding the incident, to contact them by calling 101, selecting option 2 and asking to speak to Detective Constable 604 Naomi Harris.

You can also email naomi.harris@northyorkshire.police.uk.

If you wish to remain anonymous, you can pass information to Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.

Quote reference number 12220025651 when passing on information.

‘Limited funding’ for traffic calming on Cold Bath Road, says council

North Yorkshire County Council officials have said there is “limited funding available” to implement traffic calming measures on Harrogate’s Cold Bath Road.

A call was made to introduce speed cameras or CCTV to the road following a three-car collision in the early hours of Sunday morning.

One resident said that the road becomes a racetrack after 10.30pm and called on the authorities to do more to tackle the issue.

However, an email to the resident from the county council, seen by the Stray Ferret, says that measures for the road would be costly and there is limited funding.

Paul Ryan, project engineer at the county council, said:

“Our collision data shows that in the last three years there have been four collisions resulting in personal injury along Cold Bath Road — two slight and two serious. One slight involved a low speed shunt when in queuing traffic, the other slight involved a pedestrian stepping off a controlled crossing when green light was for vehicular traffic.

“The first serious involved a motorist pulling over towards the kerb edge to avoid oncoming traffic and has collided with a pedestrian, the second serious involved a motorists driving away from a parking space and colliding with a passing cyclist.

“It is therefore unlikely that further traffic calming measures would have reduced the likelihood of these types of collisions and personal injury.”

Mr Ryan added:

“The situation on Cold Bath Road will continue to be monitored, alongside all other roads across the county to highlight where the limited funding available for improvement schemes is targeted towards.”

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North Yorkshire Police continues to investigate the Cold Bath Road crash and has appealed for witnesses and CCTV footage.

It involved a Volkswagen Golf heading towards Otley Road which crashed into two parked cars at the junction with West Cliffe Road at 3.10am on Sunday morning, leaving one passenger unconscious. No other injuries were reported.

No arrests have been made in connection with the incident.

A police statement added:

“It is only by sheer luck that the collision didn’t result in a fatality.

“As part of the investigation we would like to appeal to local residents and businesses to check their CCTV systems and ring doorbells around the time of the collision as it may have captured the vehicle, the collision, and anyone making off from the scene shortly afterwards.

“Additionally, if anyone has any other information about the incident which may assist our enquiries please contact us quoting reference 12220038835.”

Masked thieves attempt to take cash machine from Harrogate shop

Four masked men broke into a Harrogate shop and attempted to remove a cash machine in the early hours of this morning.

The Co-op store at the junction of Skipton Road and Bilton Lane was targeted at around 2.35am.

The Stray Ferret reported the break-in this morning. Now North Yorkshire Police has released further details.

It said thieves broke through the front door and attempted to remove the ATM. When this failed, they stole cash from inside the shop.

Police were alerted by store security and sent officers to the scene, supported by a National Police Air Service helicopter.

Eyewitnesses said the men left in a small, dark car — possibly a Volkswagen Golf — and made off towards New Park roundabout. Despite attempts to trace the thieves, there were no further sightings of the car.

Now, detectives are appealing for more witnesses and CCTV footage to help their investigations. They have asked anyone living near the Co-op or along Skipton Road who has CCTV or a doorbell camera to check for footage of a small dark car leaving the area around that time. Drivers with dash cams are also asked to check their footage.

Anyone with information should call North Yorkshire Police on 101, selection option one and speak to the force control room, or email tom.baker@northyorkshire.police.uk, quoting reference 12220041651. Alternatively, call Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.

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Harrogate Co-op closed after reported break-in

The Co-op store on Harrogate’s Skipton Road is closed this morning after reports of a break-in overnight.

The Stray Ferret was alerted to the break-in at the shop, which was cordoned off by police this morning.

At the scene, the glass on the automatic door of the store was smashed in. An in-store cash machine, which was found lying on the floor inside the entrance, was also damaged.

The store normally opens at 7am, but was still closed at 8am this morning. A sign reads that the Co-op is “temporarily closed”.

The Co-op entrance, which was smashed over night.

The Co-op entrance, which was smashed overnight.

The Stray Ferret has contacted North Yorkshire Police for more information on the incident.

A police helicopter was also out in Harrogate at 3am this morning. However, it is unclear whether this is connected to the break-in.

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City council to make formal complaint about policing in Ripon

Ripon councillors have voted unanimously to make a formal complaint against the city’s police amid fears that the force has lost public confidence.

Concerns about the failure to tackle and eradicate the recurring problems of criminal activity in Ripon, combined with a perceived lack of urgency in their response to 101 calls made by the public, were voiced by Independent and Conservative councillors alike.

In a further blow for residents worried about the lack of police resources to deal with violent and anti-social behaviour, members at last night’s Ripon City Council meeting were told that the provision of a custody suite at the Stonebridgegate site that police share with the city’s firefighters will not materialise.

Photo of Ripon Police and Fire station

The promised custody suite will not be added at that site that Ripon Police share with firefighters.

Former North Yorkshire Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner Philip Allott, pledged to fund the project and provide two additional cctv cameras, in a two-pronged plan to support enhanced policing in the city.

But Independent council leader Andrew Williams, said:

“The promises he made were nothing more than pie in the sky, there was no way in a million years that he was going to be able to pay for these facilities out of his community budget. The custody suite alone would have cost up to £7 million.”

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Cllr Williams revealed that Zoe Metcalfe, who was elected commissioner in November following Mr Allott’s resignation – in the face of widespread condemnation of remarks he made in a radio interview about the Sarah Everard murder trial – had requested the council to submit a complaint to her about policing in Ripon.

He said:

“When I and three fellow councillors met with her last week, we had a frank discussion and after listening to our concerns, she asked the council to make a formal complaint, so that she can take the necessary official steps to address the matter.

“Resident are being asked to pay more for policing through their council tax and what they are receiving in Ripon at the moment is not fit for purpose.”

Cllr Mike Chambers, who is also cabinet member for housing and safer communities on Harrogate Borough Council, said:

“I have been pressing the commissioner for more warranted police officers on the beat in Ripon, because the PCSOs (police community support officers) have only limited powers to take action when an incident occurs.”

Cllr Pauline McHardy, an independent city and district councillor, added:

“I spoke with a market stallholder who had their cash box stolen early last Thursday morning. They reported it straight away but the police didn’t send anybody  to investigate the theft. This just isn’t good enough.”

Stop drivers using Harrogate’s Cold Bath Road ‘as a racetrack’, says resident

A three-car crash on Harrogate’s Cold Bath Road was “always going to happen” because drivers use the street as a racetrack, according to a local resident.

A Volkswagen Golf heading towards Otley Road crashed into two parked cars at the junction with West Cliffe Road at 3.10am on Sunday morning, leaving one passenger unconscious. No other injuries were reported.

One local resident contacted the Stray Ferret to say the road “becomes a racetrack” after 10.30pm and called on the authorities to do more to tackle the issue.

He claimed those involved bragged they were doing more than 100mph and said it was time for speed cameras or traffic calming measures.

‘No one does anything about it’

The road includes a 20mph stretch, which was implemented outside Western Primary School in February last year.

But a resident in the Cold Bath Road area, who asked not to be named, said this was not observed despite the speed indicator being shown throughout the day.

They said they had written to North Yorkshire County Council to call for further measures as drivers “never slow down”. The crash on Sunday morning prompted them to write to the authority again.

“They do it all the time.

“After 10.30pm, it becomes a racetrack and no one does anything about it. It [the crash] was always going to happen.

“Just put speed cameras up. I’m a driver and when I see a speed camera, then I adjust my speed.”

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North Yorkshire Police continues to investigate the Cold Bath Road crash and has appealed for witnesses and CCTV footage.

No arrests have been made in connection with the incident.

A police statement added:

“It is only by sheer luck that the collision didn’t result in a fatality.

“As part of the investigation we would like to appeal to local residents and businesses to check their CCTV systems and ring doorbells around the time of the collision as it may have captured the vehicle, the collision, and anyone making off from the scene shortly afterwards.

“Additionally, if anyone has any other information about the incident which may assist our enquiries please contact us quoting reference 12220038835.”