Police have been working with partners agencies to tackle metal theft, road safety and road crime in the Edinburgh area.
Operation Scandium is a British Transport Police led initiative, which was set up to ensure that scrap metal dealers and those who trade in scrap metal were undertaking their responsibilities under the Air Weapons and Licensing (Scotland) Act 2015.
Several days of action have been held since 2015. On Monday, December 12, officers teamed up with partner agencies on Seafield Road to undertake vehicle checks in order to both educate traders on their responsibilities and hold them to account.
Agencies in attendance included British Transport Police, the Scottish Environment Protection Agency, HM Revenue and Customs, Edinburgh Council Licensing, Scottish Fire and Rescue Service, Lothian Busses and the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency.
This activity resulted in sixty-four vehicles being stopped for various offences including some vehicles being found to not have insurance or MOTs completed, there were also failures to obtain Scrap Dealer Licence Report;
Three commercial vehicles were issued warnings as the drivers were found to be smoking. Waste offences were also identified.
Sergeant Kos Papakyriakou from the Road Policing Unit at Fettes said: “The tackling of metal theft is important for a number of reasons as it is not only illegal, it can also be detrimental to our environment.
“By undertaking this day of action we have been able to both educate traders on their responsibilities and hold them to account. By working with our partner agencies, we’re able to not only give advice to the public, but also make our roads safer for everyone.
“Anyone wish to find out more about Operation Scandium can visit the Police Scotland website.”
John graduated from Telford College in 2010 with an HNC in Practical Journalism and since then he worked for the North Edinburgh News, The Southern Reporter, the Irish News Review and The Edinburgh Reporter. In addition he has been published in the Edinburgh Evening News and the Hibernian FC Programme.
