Pubdate: Sun, 27 Mar 2005 Source: Observer, The (UK) Copyright: 2005 The Observer Contact: http://www.observer.co.uk/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/315 Author: Tony Thompson and Martin Bright, The Observer CRIME WAVE OVERWHELMS THIN BLUE LINE Chief Constable Vows To Carry On Fight As Gun Crime And Drug Culture Puts Regional Police Force Under Pressure Police in Nottinghamshire were congratulating themselves last week on the conviction of the man who murdered Andrew Chikiondi Banda, a small-time drug dealer who came to Britain from Malawi in search of a better life. Banda had been sucked into the gangs and guns culture of the city dubbed 'Shottingham' and paid for it with his life. At first glance the conviction looks like a victory for the Nottinghamshire force which, according to its own Chief Constable, Steve Green, is in the middle of a crisis. But for many of his critics it will provide further evidence that he has allowed crime in the city to spiral out of control. In the next few weeks, Green will face a barrage of further criticism, which could seriously undermine his chances of remaining in the post. The force is already the subject of an inquiry by Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary (HMIC) ordered by Charles Clarke, the Home Secretary, into its ability to deal with murder and other serious crimes. The inspectorate's report is due to be published before 4 April, just before the start of the election campaign. It is likely to be unflattering, as it will examine Green's decision to take frontline officers off the streets in some of Nottingham's highest crime areas, something he was later forced to reverse. At the same time, a further inquiry is being conducted by the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) into the murder of a Nottinghamshire couple who had been moved to Lincolnshire for their own safety after a series of threats. The couple were shot dead minutes after placing a call to Nottinghamshire police to report a prowler. The inquiry will focus on the level of intelligence-sharing between the Lincolnshire and Nottinghamshire forces. Graham Allen, the MP for Nottingham North, has lodged a further complaint with the IPCC over comments Green made to a Sunday newspaper two weeks ago. Green said that the force was preparing to 'farm out' murder inquiries as his officers did not have time to investigate them. 'I believe he has been guilty of serious misjudgment,' Graham Allen told The Observer. 'Not just in giving the interview but in his original decision to take beat officers off the streets of Nottingham.' Banda had arrived in Nottingham with high hopes. The happily married 26-year-old from Malawi came to Britain to study and dreamed of one day running his own business. He was not a gangster and had no criminal record, but after a few months of living in the city he could no longer resist the lure of the seemingly easy money to be made in the area's burgeoning drugs trade. In April 2004 he invited two teenagers to his house, produced a small block of cocaine worth UKP225 and asked them to sell it on his behalf. The pair passed the drugs on to a 17-year-old who decided to keep both the drug and the money for himself. When Banda complained, the boy and two friends went to Banda's house and stabbed him to death. On closer inspection, the Banda case is yet further evidence of the problems the force is trying to overcome. Although the 17-year-old was convicted, he is not believed to have struck the fatal blow and charges against the suspected killer and another alleged accomplice were dropped through lack of evidence. It was a repeat of a situation days earlier when Peter Williams was jailed for the fatal shooting of a jeweller, Marian Bates. Williams is not thought to have pulled the trigger of the murder weapon and the chief suspect is still at large. The Bates case also revealed a number of shortcomings in the work of the force's detective branch. Nottingham's gun crime problem is often blown out of proportion. It currently ranks fifth beneath London, Manchester, Liverpool and the West Midlands for firearms-related crime. But whereas in other cities the problem has grown steadily since the mid-1980s, in Nottingham it virtually exploded overnight. In 2002 the city experienced more shooting incidents than it had in the previous seven years combined. The force is at present running no fewer than 30 murder investiga tions and has now run out of major incident rooms and experienced detectives capable of leading murder inquiries. The entire force for the county consists of just 2,500 officers, and even though this figure has grown in recent years many locals believe it still falls far short of what is needed. In the absence of an effective police presence, parts of the community are addressing the matter themselves. Pastor Joan Francis of the King's Hall Christian Centre, now leads thrice-weekly Prayer Patrols throughout the troubled district of St Ann's. The centre backs onto the green where 14-year-old Danielle Beccan was gunned down on her way home from a fair last October. Danielle's mother is a member of the congregation. Pastor Francis hopes the patrols will reduce tension and fear of crime within the community. Next month will see the launch of Nottingham Mothers Against Crime, a pressure group set up by Hyacinth France in response to the murder of Danielle Beccan. The group aims to run a series of projects aimed at keeping youths occupied and out of trouble. 'The last four people who have been shot in Nottingham,' says France, 'are people that I have known. It has been a bad couple of years, but Steve Green is a good man. He is doing his job but he has a very difficult job to do. 'St Ann's is still a good area. I've lived here for 22 years and I've never had a problem, but I want to keep my children safe.' - --- MAP posted-by: Derek