Police chiefs have warned the coronavirus pandemic could “bring out the worst in humanity” after a spate of opportunistic crimes hindered efforts to control the crisis.
The theft of oxygen canisters from a hospital, the puncturing of ambulance tyres and the raiding of food banks by thieves were among the “worrying isolated incidents” in recent days raised by the National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC).
Although a spokesperson for the organisation said it had yet to notice any patterns in the types of crimes being reported, they warned that some could exploit the chaos amid the coronavirus lockdown.
“Crises like this bring out some of the best but sadly also the worst in humanity and there will be individuals who seek to exploit the pandemic,” the spokesperson said. “That’s why it’s essential the police have the resources and the powers to crack down on shameless, opportunistic crimes like this.”
The comments by the NPCC came as National Trading Standards was forced to issue a warning to the public after reports of scams and counterfeit goods related to Covid-19.
What do the new restrictions involve?
People in the UK will only be allowed to leave their home for the following purposes:
- Shopping for basic necessities, as infrequently as possible
- One form of exercise a day – for example a run, walk, or cycle – alone or with members of your household
- Any medical need, to provide care or to help a vulnerable person
- Travelling to and from work, but only where this is absolutely necessary and cannot be done from home
Police will have the powers to enforce the rules, including through fines and dispersing gatherings. To ensure compliance with the instruction to stay at home, the government will:
- Close all shops selling non-essential goods, including clothing and electronic stores and other premises including libraries, playgrounds and outdoor gyms, and places of worship
- Stop all gatherings of more than two people in public – excluding people you live with
- Stop all social events, including weddings, baptisms and other ceremonies, but excluding funerals
Parks will remain open for exercise, but gatherings will be dispersed.
Among the scams identified are criminals targeting older people at their homes and offering to do their shopping, but taking the money without returning, as well as people selling fake – and potentially dangerous – sanitisers, face masks and swabbing kits on doorsteps and online.
An investigation by the consumer website Which? also found that online retailers Amazon and eBay were failing to crack down on sellers profiteering on items that are difficult to find in shops due to stockpiling.
Among active listings for overpriced items were a £40 thermometer priced at £300 on eBay and a £3 bottle of disinfectant on sale for £29.99 on Amazon.
As public guidance on physical distancing was strengthened over the last few days a series of opportunistic incidents were reported across the country.
In Bristol, two delivery vans were destroyed in arson attacks outside an Iceland store in Southmead on Monday night. Richard Walker, the food retailer’s managing director, said: “At a time when home delivery is literally a lifeline for some vulnerable people, this is sickening.”
In a statement, Iceland said the disturbances began at about 9.30pm, with police riot vans called out. “Youths threw missiles at the police as they tried to disperse them,” it said. “Later in the evening the two home delivery vans parked outside our Southmead store were set alight and the fire brigade attended to put out the fire.”
The retailer warned that the vans would both have to be written off at a time when its delivery fleet was running at full capacity.
In the early hours on Saturday, three men stole oxygen and nitrous oxide canisters after breaking into a locked unit at a delivery loading area of Withington community hospital, south Manchester.
On Sunday morning, paramedics arrived at a vehicle preparation centre in Ramsgate, Kent, to find holes had been drilled into the tyres of six ambulances. The vehicles were taken off the road as the county’s ambulance service announced it was under significant pressure during the pandemic. Kent police are investigating the incident, which they described as “highly irresponsible”.
Later the same day, a West Yorkshire police officer claimed on Twitter that she and her colleagues had been faced with crowds “spitting on the floor and coughing at us”, as well as being pelted with eggs, as they responded to a serious incident.
The force did not confirm the reports, but said the post had been written by a serving officer.
Three teenagers were also arrested on Friday after an elderly couple were allegedly coughed at and assaulted in Hertfordshire.
On Thursday, a food bank in Knottingley, West Yorkshire, was forced to close after thieves raided a storage container for donations including sanitary products and toilet rolls.
Although the Trussell Trust-led project had already decided to reduce its service because older volunteers were classed as being at higher risk of contracting the virus, the food bank’s manager, Janet Burns, said the incident had “forced our hand” because stockpiling restrictions meant it could not replace the items.
