Police launch Operation Heat to tackle 'disproportionate' levels of motorcycle nuisance in Wellingborough

Operation Heat has been launched to tackle the ‘disproportionate’ levels of motorcycle nuisance that plague Wellingborough’s estates each year.

The initiative started at the beginning of June in response to community concerns regarding nuisance off-road motorcycles and the anti-social behaviour they cause.

Running similarly to Operation Pacify – the operation to target nuisance motorcycling in Corby – Operation Heat will seize the nuisance vehicles, report the riders for the relevant offences, carry out proactive patrols in areas of concern and respond to community intelligence.

On the first day of the operation, a motorcycle was seized on the Hemmingwell estate and the rider reported for riding with no insurance.

Officers from the Wellingborough Neighbourhood Policing Team are now appealing to members of the local community to report any nuisance motorcycling they see so that the team can follow it up and take these dangerous vehicles off the town’s roads.

PC Danny Tyers from the Wellingborough Neighbourhood Policing Team said: “Operation Heat has been set up to target the disproportionate levels of illegal and dangerous motorcycles that plague the estates of Wellingborough each year.

“These bikes not only generate a large amount of anti-social behaviour related calls but many of them are stolen, non-road legal and the riders have no regards for public safety - riding dangerously and using them to commit other crimes.

“The operation will run for at least the remainder of 2023 and I would appeal to anyone in the town who sees these bikes to please report them to us so we can tackle this issue.

“Though it may look like nothing gets done immediately, we will use all the information provided to build up a bigger picture of the issue in order to take robust action.”

If you have any information regarding off-road vehicles in Wellingborough, either report it online at www.northants.police.uk/ro or via 101 quoting reference 22000474823.

Earlier this year the Northants Telegraph reported how dozens of bikes had been seized as part of Operation Pacify in Corby.

In the space of 12 months, the team had seized 59 motorcycles and 25 riders had been dealt with by the courts.