Dorset Police received a report that sometime between 1am and 4am on Monday 1 April 2024 a Hitachi digger and JCB digger were stolen from a development site in Ringwood Road in Ferndown.
Following extensive enquiries and collaboration with the National Construction and Agricultural Theft Team (NCATT), the National Vehicle Crime Intelligence Service (NaVCIS), Polish police and Interpol, the Hitachi digger was successfully tracked down and located in the Pruchnik area of Poland in September 2024.
Arrangements have been made for the digger to be shipped back to the UK and returned to its owner.
Police Constable Kate Schofield, of the Dorset Police Rural Crime Team, said: “I am grateful to all the agencies that were involved in recovering the stolen digger.
“This type of crime has a significant impact on victims and their businesses and we are determined to do all we can to recover stolen items and reduce the impact on victim’s livelihoods.
“Our investigation is ongoing to identify the offenders and hold them accountable for their organised offending. We are also doing all we can to locate the second digger that was stolen during this incident.
“We are continuing to liaise with the Polish police and Interpol to establish the full circumstances of the recovery of the digger.
“We will endeavour to work with neighbouring police forces – and in this case forces overseas – to target those who affect our rural and construction communities.”
The victim stated: “As a developer, we have been hit hard over the past year by theft. We are very pleased to have had this machine recovered.
“It is a testament to the work carried out by the police and hopefully serves as a reminder of the relentless work involved. Even across country borders, stolen items can and will be tracked down.”
Superintendent Andrew Huddleston, of the National Rural Crime Unit, said: “This is one of many international machinery seizures made over the last 18 months.
“It clearly demonstrates what we know – that international organised crime is targeting the UK farming and construction industries.
“Whilst this is a good piece of police work by Dorset Police, NAVCIS and NCATT, the necessity for modern security on all machinery, vigilance and reporting of suspicious activity has never been greater.”
Police and Crime Commissioner for Dorset, David Sidwick said: “I am delighted to see yet another high value piece of equipment being returned to its rightful owner and I would like to thank everyone involved in recovering the digger.
“A lot of the acquisitive crime in Dorset is highly organised, especially when it comes to rural crime and that is why I invested heavily in our Rural Crime Team who have been successful in taking the fight to criminals. This is yet another example Dorset Police working ‘without borders’ and making the very best of a joined-up, multi-agency approach to tackling crime. This collaborative strategy has been enhanced since 2021 through the Dorset Partnership Against Rural Crime, consisting of local and national organisations that have experts in specific areas relating to rural crime.
“I urge farmers to use machinery marking kits which help authorities identify stolen items and get them back to the rightful owner. My office recently funded £20,000 worth of marking kits for Dorset farmers, which are proven to reduce theft by up to 83%. Tackling crime is a collective effort and together, we will beat the gangs causing misery and profiting from criminality in our county and beyond. They don’t see borders and nor do the police.”
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