In our July 2001 edition, Audrius Sapola reported from Lithuania on petrol forecourt crime in the Baltic state. Here he gives us an update.
In our July 2001 edition, Audrius Sapola reported from Lithuania on petrol forecourt crime in the Baltic state. Here he gives us an update.
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When I started to work as a safety and security manager more than three years ago, I didn’t have a clue what I was supposed to do. Security management didn’t ring a bell at that time in Lithuania and people thought that all I had to do was deal with contract guards and shoplifters. I was thinking the other way around, though. Eventually I became a member of ASIS. Thanks to the internet and e-mail I managed to find loads of information about the subject and establish some very useful contacts. There are lots of things that I’ve learned from British examples. I spoke with Kevin Eastwood from BOSS and discussed radio links and other crime prevention initiatives with Prof Jason Ditton from the Scottish Centre of Crime Prevention who suggested that we ought to use mobile phones instead of conventional walkie talkies.
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After introduction of the crime prevention project ‘Web’ last spring, solely in Lietuva Statoil petrol stations, fuel stealing in Vilnius town decreased by 63 per cent last year, compared with year 2000. In 2000, due to fuel stealing in Vilnius town alone, Lietuva Statoil suffered the loss of 40,318 Litas (£7,000), while last year this amount dropped to 14,818 Litas (£2,600). In the years 1999 and 2000, due to fuel stealing in the whole country, Lietuva Statoil incurred the loss of 128,000 to 130,000 Litas (about £22,700). Lietuva Statoil has 10 petrol stations in Vilnius town and 34 in all of Lithuania. In 2001, when intensive cooperation with the police and introduction of crime prevention projects started, the loss fell to 31,644 Litas (£5,600). Fuel companies incur quite substantial material losses due to crimes at petrol stations such as fuel stealing, thefts, burglaries, swindling, payments by counterfeit bank cards, and trade in drugs and their use in petrol station territories. The purpose of ‘Web’ is prevention of such crimes. The most effective way of combating these crimes is pooling the forces of the police, business and public organisations. The ‘Web’ project was between Vilnius General Police Commissariat, Crime Prevention Center in Lithuania and Lietuva Statoil. It was helped by talks with a wireless communication specialist, West Midlands Police Insp Martin Wright. Project participants may exchange information about incidents and crimes at petrol stations by group mobile communication means via the facility GSM Pro or e-mail.
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Audrius’ useful UK websites: Home Office crime reduction www.crimereduction.gov.uk, Thames Valley Business Crime Prevention Centre www.businesscrime.co.uk, British Oil Security Syndicate,.
