'Suspicious behaviour' towards children in Leighton Buzzard
There have been rumours & speculation on social media, but police haven't been told.
After several reports of suspicious behaviour towards children in Leighton Buzzard, police are asking people to tell them and not post on social media.
Bedfordshire Police say they have had some people contact them over the past ten days, but there is also speculation happening on the likes of Facebook.
In a statement, the force said:
"These are uncertain times for all of us and, with children back at school, we understand any concerns regarding safety will be paramount.
"It is only natural that parents will be worried and will want to share messaging around potential risks to their children."
They say they understand that these incidents can be extremely concerning for our communities.
The statement continued:
"We want to reassure you that while no children were harmed we take reports of any potential risk to children seriously and we are working to establish the circumstances, and our community teams have increased their visibility around local schools.
"However, we are also aware that there is a lot of rumour and speculation on social media, with additional incidents being discussed that haven’t been reported to the police."
People are being urged to help police keep children safe by reporting any suspicious activity or concerning behaviour to them as soon as possible and only to share official information.
This allows officers to investigate early on, and to build an intelligence picture around any emerging issues so they can take appropriate action.
If an incident is in progress, call 999.
If the incident has already happened, report online.