CRIMINALS travelling into the borough from outlying areas to burgle properties have been targeted in a police operation.
One illegal vehicle was seized and there was one arrest of an individual wanted for skipping bail. There were also two arrests in connection with a shoplifting incident.
The operation, which ran for much of Tuesday last week, saw 13 individuals stopped to account for their presence in Brentwood. Another four were stopped and searched.
The operation designed to tackle the number of burglaries being committed by offenders travelling into Hutton from Havering follows new figures that show an increase in the number of incidents in the wealthy patch of the borough.
In May there were three reported crimes. The latest figures for August show there were ten burglaries in the area.
In a bid to drive down the numbers of burglaries, 12 police officers locked down major roads and railway stations.
Chief Inspector Ed Wells, district commander for Epping and Brentwood, said: "Within the district my officers are tackling burglars every day and we have seen a number criminals caught. Today's operation builds on this success with significant numbers of officers from other parts of the county working with local officers. I hope it will reassure the people living and working in Hutton that we will not tolerate criminal behaviour there."
Chief Inspector Jason Scrivener, currently working on Operation Nemesis, said: "Information we have been gathering suggests a number of offenders may be using rail to travel and commit crime.
"By working together with our colleagues from the Met and British Transport Police we have been able to share intelligence about trends and tactics in order to target the right areas at key times to disrupt those intent on committing crime."
