Knife-crime battle is stepped up

The battle against knife crime in a north London borough is being stepped up with a series of high visibility police patrols from Monday.

Knife surrender bins were put in place at Edmonton, Enfield, Ponders End and Southgate Police Stations as part of Enfield's Operation Noak last week.

Police and Trading Standards will also be clamping down on shops in the area which sell knives to the under-16s.

Operation Noak is part of London-wide knife crime scheme Operation Blunt.

Supt Bill Woodhall, of Enfield police, said: "Knife crime is a very dangerous culture and one that we wish to remove from Enfield borough.

"Young people between the ages of 12 and 20 are most likely to be the victims as well as the offenders.

"Offenders need to know that they will be arrested. To carry a knife is not cool or glamorous, it is dangerous and a criminal offence."