16/10/2026
It's been a few months since my last newsletter, so I thought I'd better bring you all up to speed about what has been happening across Newark and Sherwood.
Before I provide an update about some of the work our policing teams have been doing and our plans going forward, I'd like to firstly pass on my condolences to the family of Robert Henry Steele.
All of us were incredibly saddened to hear about the four-year-old's death following a collision in Newark in August. Criminal proceedings into Robert Henry's death remain ongoing in court, so I'd like to remind people to please not speculate about this and to carry on respecting his family's privacy as they continue to grieve.
During my previous newsletter, I mentioned that antisocial behaviour, drugs supply and serious acquisitive crime would be our chosen policing priorities for Newark and Sherwood going forward.
As I'll detail further below, a decision was taken at our latest quarterly meeting to replace serious acquisitive crime with nuisance vehicles, so there will be a further emphasis on tackling this issue for at least the next three months. I can therefore confirm that our current priority areas for Newark and Sherwood are:
Antisocial behaviour (ASB)
Drugs
Nuisance vehicles
Taking them in order then, in terms of ASB, we've worked closely with Newark and Sherwood District Council a lot in recent months on a variety of interventions that have garnered some great results. One notable example of this was the securing of a two-year injunction order against James Murr, 31, who caused prolonged distress to the Newark community for more than 18 months, with the exploitation of vulnerable people, repeated nuisance behaviour and drug use among the reports made against him. In response to his repeated ASB, he has now been banned from Newark for two years, which is a great result for the town.
Criminal behaviour orders (CBOs) have also been secured against prolific offenders, including one man known to cause issues with his street drinking, while a multitude of different closure orders have been either secured or extended against problem properties that have caused ASB issues. All of this work is continuing and we are targeting those individuals and locations that cause the greatest harm.
We will be focusing on youth-related antisocial behaviour and wider nuisance behaviour affecting our communities. This priority has been set ahead of the traditionally busier periods around Halloween, Bonfire Night and the Christmas season, when reports of ASB often increase. As such, my officers will be carrying out high-visibility patrols, engaging with young people and working alongside partner agencies to prevent and address behaviour that causes harassment, alarm or distress to local residents.
As regular newsletter or blog readers will know, tackling drugs supply has been a policing priority for us for quite some time, because of the problems it can cause to people's lives and communities too. We will always look to do everything we can to put drug dealers before the courts – something that happened in July when Craig Dickman, of Ollerton, was jailed for three years for supplying crack co***ne, he**in and cannabis.
The next few months will continue to see us develop intelligence, conduct proactive operations and work with local communities to identify and disrupt those involved in drug dealing and associated criminality. Our teams have made multiple drug seizures and executed several warrants at properties linked to drugs supply, with work currently ongoing with the council to obtain a closure order on one house persistently used by drug users and dealers.
Information provided by the public provides a major role in helping us target those involved in the supply of drugs, so my ask to people would be to continue reporting any suspicions to us, either via 101, 999 in an emergency, through the Notts Police website, or via Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.
Moving onto our new policing priority – nuisance vehicles – then. We are aware there is significant public concern around this issue, and while it is something we continue to work hard to tackle, we are reviewing and revising our approach. We will be looking to be visible and present in hotspot areas, taking direct action to stop and seize e-bikes, off-road bikes and e-scooters that are being used irresponsibly. Future activities will include:
Op Jericho – our response to off-road bikes, quads and Sur-Rons. We will use resources as part of this, including the off-road bike team, drone and CCTV support, to cover hot spot areas and seek to disrupt and deter this offending
Op Wheelspin – this is our approach to dealing with car cruisers and includes the support from Operational Support colleagues to prevent cruises taking place, and to deal with offenders using road traffic act legislation
Hotspot patrols – we have additional funding for patrols around Newark Town Centre, and will be looking to deal with those who use e-scooters in the town centre
As I say, we fully appreciate the concerns surrounding the irresponsible use of vehicles like e-bikes, off-road bikes and e-scooters. That's precisely why we've taken the step of selecting nuisance vehicles as a priority policing area for us to tackle until the end of this calendar year. While I'd like to make it clear this is very much a national issue – not a problem for Newark and Sherwood or Nottinghamshire as a whole – we've heard the concerns from our residents around this, so are committed to doing all we can to make people feel safer.
As mentioned in my last newsletter, offences involving a knife or bladed article are thankfully rare for Newark, but when they do happen, they can lead to big sentences. On that note, I thought I'd flag a court result from earlier this month, whereby Newark resident Ramis Cetin was issued with an extended jail sentence of 10 years, after stabbing a man he knew with a broken glass. Thankfully for everyone involved, the other man didn't sustain far more serious injuries.
On a far lighter note, I'd like to end this newsletter by introducing you to a new member of our Newark neighbourhood policing team. I hope you'll all join me in welcoming Newark Sergeant Rachel Dowsett, who recently joined us and is already doing a great job!
