Police guard on post office cash

Police chiefs have extended an operation that safeguards cash-in-transit deliveries to protect local post offices as well.

Greater Manchester Police has teamed up with Post Office Ltd to launch the Safer Post Offices Initiative and make the county safer.

It will operate alongside GMP’s long-established Vanguard operation which targets organised gangs who carry out cash-in-transit robberies and raids on commercial and financial premises.

Officers will work with sub-postmasters to offer advice and guidance on security issues in order to deter criminals. Each branch will then be assessed and, if successful, will be accredited to the Safer Post Offices Initiative.

It follows on from the Adopt a Post Office scheme which has been running for several years and sees each Post Office branch in Greater Manchester “twinned” with their local police officer.

Det Chief Insp Pat McKelvey said: “We already have close links with our post offices through the Adopt a Post Office scheme and understand the importance of working with the sub-postmasters.

“They take security very seriously and already put in a significant amount of work to make sure that their business is secure, but we are hoping to take this even further and by offering advice and guidance, send out a clear message that post offices are not a place for criminals.

“As part of our wider Vanguard operation we use a variety of tactics to prevent armed robberies, including armed police vehicles escorting high-risk security vehicles as they carry out cash deliveries and patrol cars following cash-handling vehicles.

“Criminals can be assured that we are on their case and we won’t tolerate such activity in Greater Manchester.”