Peterborough dog walker who found samurai-style sword in bush criticises police response

Simon Bates immediately phoned Cambridgeshire police after discovering the sword in Manton, Bretton, near a children’s play area, on Monday.

Simon had seen a youth bending down in the bush earlier in the day while walking his dog, and when he returned that lunchtime he discovered the sword in the same bush.

He said: “I had a phone call back from an officer saying we’ve not got the resources to come and get it, can you bring it in?”

Simon decided not to bring the sword in due to the fear he might be seen with the weapon in his way in, but he said the police had not followed up with him to come and collect it themselves, even though it is at his girlfriend’s property less than a mile away from Thorpe Wood Police Station.

Simon said: “Knife crime is in the news every day. This could have been used in a crime. It’s frightening they have not sent anyone round or followed up on it.”

A police spokesman said officers were unable to attend at the time of the call but have since attempted to make contact in order to retrieve the sword. He added: “We remain committed to protecting the most vulnerable people and identifying those most at risk of harm when making demand decisions.”