Herts police warning to farmers over GPS thefts

Hertfordshire Constabulary is urging farmers to review security measures following thefts of GPS domes and related computer screens elsewhere in the country.

Sergeant Ryan Hemmings, from the force's Rural Operational Support Team (ROST) said: "Theft of equipment such as this means that many farmers are left unable to work until it is replaced, usually at a huge cost to them.

"While we'll be continuing our regular patrols of rural areas, we'd advise farmers to take as many precautions as they can to help keep their equipment safe. The best thing to do is to remove any equipment from combines and tractors and store it away somewhere secure.

"We appreciate this is probably the last thing people would want to be doing at the end of a long day and that they should be able to leave their equipment unattended without fear of it being taken. Unfortunately, there are some extremely selfish people out there who may seek to take advantage and we don't want to give opportunist thieves an easy target.

"You can also get your equipment security marked, making it less attractive to thieves as it's harder to sell on. It also means that if it is ever lost or stolen and subsequently recovered, it can be returned to its rightful owner.

"If you witness any suspicious activity in rural areas or a crime in progress, please call 999 straightaway."