"I'm going to be tough on crime," vows new Bedfordshire Police chief

Bedfordshire’s new chief constable has vowed to be tough on crime and make better use of technology.

Trevor Rodenhurst made the pledge after being formally approved by the county’s police and crime panel on Monday evening (December 12).

The former deputy chief constable has been acting chief since being made police and crime commissioner Festus Akinbusoye’s preferred candidate last month.

Earlier today (Wednesday, we revealed how he was the only applicant for the job.

Mr Rodenhurst – who has a background in tackling serious organised crime – said: “People won’t be surprised to hear that one of my focuses is to be tough on crime, making Bedfordshire an unwelcome place for criminals.

“I want us to have a real perpetrator focus, targeting those who cause the most harm. But it must be done in the right way, based on evidence and targeted, to prevent over-policing any of our communities.

“We also must ensure we keep victims at the heart of every investigation, acting with compassion and providing them with the support and care they need."

The force has been praised by His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabularies and Fire and Rescue Services (HMICFRS) for its use of digital vans which allow fast-time downloading of devices, saving a huge amount of time for investigators and also enabling devices to be returned quickly.

Mr Rodenhurst added: “I want us to make the best use of technology to improve our effectiveness. Tech is such an important part of all our lives now and policing has a lot to do to catch up. We’ve made a great start in Bedfordshire by introducing digi vans and are piloting some more exciting tools, but we’ve only just started scratching the surface."

However, he said one of his first challenges would be to develop one of the youngest workforces in UK policing.

“The recent national Uplift recruitment drive means that we currently have around 400 student officers in their first two years of service – which, due to the size of our force, is a significant portion of our workforce.

"It is great to have young and enthusiastic people coming in, full of innovative ideas, but it will require investment of time and effort for support and training.”