How CID works with community to keep city safe - Iain Ramsay

Now that we are well into the second half of the year, it’s a good opportunity to update Edinburgh’s communities on the various pieces of work and investigations that the city’s CID have been working on or seen through to a successful conclusion.
Detective Chief Inspector Iain RamsayDetective Chief Inspector Iain Ramsay
Detective Chief Inspector Iain Ramsay

Earlier this month, Marc Kenneth McKinlay was jailed for six years at the High Court in Edinburgh for the culpable homicide of Donald Maguire. Mr Maguire, who was 58, sustained serious head injuries after being assaulted at Haymarket station in February, 2020 and subsequently died of his injuries. Our thoughts remain with his family and friends and hopefully McKinlay’s sentencing brings them some form of closure to this terrible incident.

Another successful court trial came in June, when, as a result of protracted inquiries, Patrick Mooney and Patrick Keenan, were sentenced to 10 and 9 years respectively for abduction and robberies committed across Scotland. They identified and targeted specific individuals before entering their homes, holding them against their will and robbing them of their possessions.

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Edinburgh’s city-wide initiative to tackle motorcycle theft and associated antisocial behaviour, Operation Soteria continues to pay dividends within the Capital. Following it’s relaunch on 20 June 2022, we have made 22 arrests and preferred 120 charges all relating to motorcycle theft and associated crime. In addition, we have recovered 57 motorcycles, bringing the total value of bikes recovered since June to approximately £450,000.

We launched Operation Greenbay a few years ago as result of a rise in housebreakings, where high-value vehicles, were stolen and used to commit crimes, both within Edinburgh and neighbouring regions. This resulted in officers across Edinburgh and the Lothians working together to detect the offenders, deter and prevent any further criminality. In July, through a combined effort, one such offender, Steven Mason was sentenced to 36 months for various crimes of dishonesty, violence and road traffic offences.

CID Proactive officers continue to undertake operations across the city to target those involved in drug supply and who look to exploit vulnerable members of the community. Officers recently conducted proactive, intelligence-led drugs search warrant executions at a number of addresses in the North of Edinburgh. During these searches, we recovered approximately 120 wraps of crack cocaine and diamorphine. Several people were apprehended at the time and have since been charged, each receiving significant custodial sentences.

With the city now busier because of the Festival, CID officers are working closely with uniformed colleagues to keep residents and visitors safe from crimes such as theft and robbery. The public have a vital role to play in helping deter such crimes. Ensure your bag, purse or wallet is secure and don’t leave your phone sitting on the table.

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Often my reactive CID officers respond to incidents of public space violence and on many occasions alcohol has played a contributing factor. We work closely with licensed premised to prevent such incidents and to encourage information-sharing in relation to anyone committing a crime. However, we would urge everyone to drink responsibly and make sure that excessive consumption doesn’t make you the target of, or participant in, criminal activity.

We have a range of crime prevention and personal safety advice available on our website at www.scotland.police.uk.

Detective Chief Inspector Iain Ramsay, Edinburgh Division CID

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