Stop and search power for Bournemouth town centre extended for a further 24 hours
An extension has now been authorised and will end at 6pm this evening.
A special stop and search power that has been in place in parts of Bournemouth town centre in response to recent violent incidents has been extended for a further 24 hours.
The Section 60 of the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994 was put in place for 24 hours from 6pm on Friday 11 August and covers part of Bournemouth seafront, Bournemouth Lower Gardens and The Square. It allows officers to stop and search anyone in the area for weapons, without needing to explain why.
An extension has now been authorised, which means the power will remain in place for a further 24 hours ending at 6pm on Sunday 13 August 2023. This is the maximum length of time the power can be used at any one time under Government legislation.
This emergency power has been implemented in response to a fatal stabbing in the area, other recent incidents of violence and concern that further violence may take place.
Officers will continue to proactively patrol the area defined in the map as part of Op Fireglow and Op Nightjar to apprehend those individuals looking to cause serious violence and carrying dangerous instruments or offensive weapons.
Superintendent Ricky Dhanda said: “I have today authorised the extension of this power in order to allow our officers to search those who may be carrying weapons and go on to cause harm within our communities.
“I would like to reiterate that this power is a short-term preventative tactic to enable us to identify these individuals and keep people safe and forms part of a much wider partnership approach that is already underway to tackle serious violence, including visiting people known to vary knives, offering talks to schools and sharing information between agencies to identify possible young offenders early.”