Parcel theft in city centre apartment blocks is on the rise in the run-up to Christmas, councillors are warning, as a new campaign is launched to combat the issue.
As has been reported by the Manchester Evening News last summer , residents living in some of the city’s best-known buildings are being plagued by parcel thieves. Previously, officers at GMP told the MEN that more security measures need to be installed by firms which manage apartment buildings, but pledged to give an ‘outstanding service’ in investigating the burglaries.
The problem has risen in the run-up to the festive period, according Jon-Connor Lyons, a Labour councillor for the Piccadilly ward. Now, other Labour councillors in the city centre — namely Sam Wheeler and Majid Dar — are launching an awareness campaign to combat the issue.
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One resident, Naz Nahar, who lives in the Northern Quarter, said her parcels are taken ‘left, right and centre.’ She explained: “Parcels are being stolen left, right and centre from my building. Whether it’s something we’ve ordered from Amazon, or my new job starter pack, parcels are being taken and we just can’t win. Despite repeated reports to the building management, no action is ever taken, even though building fees keep going up.
“We need greater awareness so people don’t let tailgaters into our building, but also more action from building management agencies to keep our parcels safe.”
Coun Majid Dar, who represents Ancoats and Beswick Ward, added: "We need to raise awareness of parcel thief and tailgating. People gain access to apartments through tailgating and we want people to keep their homes and their belongings safe. We're urging people to sign up to our campaign and they will receive anti-tailgating posters for their building and some tips on how to stop tailgating and also keep your parcels safe".
Tips range from improving CCTV in the apartment block in order to deter and collect actionable evidence for GMP, to moving parcels to a more secure area - be that outside people's apartment front doors to a key coded door.
The full tips can be viewed online and you can request posters here.
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