During an interview with STDIST Commander John Bicknell shortly before his transfer to Hong Kong Island Region as Deputy Regional Commander, OffBeat learned that the scheme is just one of a number of initiatives taken on both district and divisional levels to provide a safe place to live and work in the fast developing Sha Tin.

Other policing issues that Mr Bicknell's men get to grips with are theft, house burglary, school burglary and street deception. The villagers and Mainland immigrants living in Sha Tin, as well as Mainland visitors staying in hotels in the district, are also targets for the District's "reaching out" tactic and crime prevention efforts.

Expounding the main features of the "Safe-Shopping Scheme", Mr Bicknell said the aim was "reaching out" to frontline sale staff in shopping malls. He explained: "If we give frontline shopping assistants some encouragement, some knowledge and some personal attention, they'll be eyes and ears for us, which is in line with the current crime prevention message on TV to try to get citizens involved. The difference is if we just tell the shop assistants to call 999, they won't bother.

"What we've done was bringing them to a crime prevention seminar, bringing some experts in, explaining and showing them what a forged credit card looks like. We also gave them a personalised telephone number or contact number in the station, and assured them our phones are manned by specially tasked officers and our men would be at the scene in a matter of a few minutes after receiving a call."

In order to encourage them to come forward with information, the District assured the shopping assistants that there would be no recrimination even if their calls turned out to be a false alarm. "Recrimination? No, we never do that. We just gave them some encouragement like 'you're on the right track but didn't get it right this time; it doesn't matter, call us next time'," Mr Bicknell noted.

Sha Tin Divisional Commander Denys Chan pointed out that the assurance and encouragement, plus his officers' speedy arrival at the scenes and frontline sale staff's increased crime prevention awareness and alertness, had contributed to the success of the "Safe-Shopping Scheme".

Mr Chan described the crime prevention seminar he organised for frontline staff last October as "enlightenment" for the attendants. "They are now more alert and more smart and know what they have to watch out for and what they have to do in order to help police fight crime," he noted.

And Mr Bicknell is pleased that the scheme has yielded "very good results" - 16 theft cases were nabbed in a matter of a few months. "More significant was among the cases 11 involved forged credit cards, and some well-organised gangs have been neutralised!" he said.

Speaking of his other policing strategies, Mr Bicknell said the "reaching out" tactic was also adopted for tackling house burglaries and school burglaries involving projectors.

Last year there were about 50 house burglaries per month, with 30 to 40 per cent committed by petty criminals inside public housing estates. After stepping up liaison with private housing management, and working "hand in hand" with the District Council, the District Fight Crime Committee (DFCC) and Housing Department in raising public awareness through publicity campaigns and distribution of leaflets, the figure had been reduced to less 20 per month this year.

Reaching out to school principals and in particular school caretakers, the "key man" for crime prevention as described by Mr Bicknell, has proved equally successful in keeping the situation of school burglary in check.

Mr Bicknell's "reaching out" tactic and joint effort with the District Council and DFCC also paid off on other fronts. For preventing petty theft, he had secured the co-operation of restaurant management in displaying a warning sign for customers on their tables, and shopping mall management in broadcasting a similar message over their public address systems.

As the elderly are more easy preys for street deception, Mr Bicknell also mobilised JPC members in Sha Tin to call at centres for the elderly to drive home the prevention messages.

Referring to the law and order situation in Sha Tin, Mr Bicknell reported a 10 per cent drop in the crime rate in 2004 compared with 2003. He pointed out: "We don't have vice and late night violence. Triads are very much under control. We have only six robberies last month (April) - bully type robberies. So we generally have a satisfactory situation in terms of law and order."

Summing up his posting in Sha Tin District, Mr Bicknell said: "It has been a wonderful two years which I enjoy very much. I've the opportunity to work with very dedicated officers. We also have the opportunity to draw in resources from outside the Force and really work in partnership with the community. And I think to see that come to fruition is very satisfying indeed!

"Obviously my job satisfaction comes from having a happy and productive district, and that gives me most satisfaction at the end of the day. I'm absolutely delighted and privileged to have the opportunity to command Sha Tin."

"Reaching out" is one of Mr Bicknell's policing strategies