More civilian crime investigators

http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/rss/-/1/hi/scotland/tayside_and_central/8545373.stm

Version 0 of 1.

Civilians will be used to investigate crime across the Central Scotland Police area by this summer, the force has said.

It follows a pilot in Falkirk, where "investigative assistants" have been working with regular police officers.

The civilian staff are used primarily to investigate high volume crime like vandalism and house-breaking.

However, they may be asked to help investigate more serious offences as part of a wider team, a spokesman said.

The Priority Crime Unit, where the assistants are employed, started work in Falkirk in March 2008.

Sworn powers

They are used to investigate low level offences and do not have powers of arrest, caution or charge.

A Central Scotland Police spokesman said it was not "policing on the cheap".

"It's to free up police officers from getting bogged down investigating high volume crime, taking them away from being on patrol and maintaining a high visibility in the community," he said.

"You don't need all the sworn powers of police officers to investigate this sort of crime."

The spokesman said the civilian assistants did not go out on their own.

He also denied their role would be expanded to routinely investigate serious crimes such as rape and murder.

He added: "There may be occasions when a senior investigating officer decides to utilise civilian investigators for a particular function in a more serious case - for example door-to-door inquiries.

"But they will be working as part of a wider investigative team."