The police have unveiled new tactics which could stop moped gangs in their tracks.

A huge surge in moped crime at its highest in Camden has led to a policy U-turn which will see police chasing down moped gangs on new scrambler bikes.

The move has been welcomed by Camden crime campaigners who have been calling for the Met to up their game for the past few years.

Jessica Learmond-Criqui, who chairs the Frognal and Fitzjohns Safer Neighbourhood Panel, has challenged the Met at a series of public meetings in Hampstead

She said: “This is a move in the right direction. So finally the Met have heeded calls to bring back chaser bikes. But I am deeply concerned by the governments continued intransigence to fund the Met properly. “

The Ham&High has been backing these calls for the police to change its tactics after being inundated by reports of moped attacks.

The measures announced by The Met on Tuesday include BMW scrambler motorbikes capable of chasing runaways down alleyways.

They are also trialling DNA sprays which are sprayed on a fleeing suspect. When the suspect is caught, a UV light can link the person to the scene of a crime committed in the past.

Stinger devices will also be rolled out by police, which aim to deflate a moped’s tyres.

Moped gangs have been attacking victims on a daily basis and Camden has seen more moped crime than anywhere else in London this year with 4,147 recorded.

On September 14, Camden and Islington borough commander Catherine Roper held a public meeting in Belsize Park.

She acknowledged the “anger in the room” as victims shared their stories.

She said there was a “huge amount of productivity going on but clearly we are not doing enough to curb the problem.”

Last week, a drop in session organised by Hampstead and Kilburn MP Tulip Siddiq heard from an elderly resident who was too scared to walk on the street because of the threat.

Carlie Newman, in her 70s, said she now avoids walking down the road but takes short car journeys instead around Camden.

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