CRIME-HIT firms in Alsager have joined forces to try and end a string of computer thefts.

Gangs have targeted the Venture Business Park at Radway Green over the last 18 months, stealing computer equipment worth £130,000.

But businessmen - led by Carl Starr - have now decided to fight back by starting a scheme aimed at helping each other to crack crime.

Some 34 of the 80 firms on Venture Park have already given their backing to the new Business Watch idea, which has also won the support of police.

"The straw that broke the camel's back for me was when I was broken into, and I decided I had to do something,'' said Mr Starr, a director with Shakespeare Hydraulics.

"I got in touch with crime prevention officer Tony Kehoe, who came along to tell us about security and what measures we can take to prevent break-ins.

"The aim of the group is to create an awareness that it's everyone's responsibility to be alert and be aware of crime, because otherwise we are all going to be victims.''

Mr Starr is one of a five-strong committee which is also looking at practical ways of beating the burglars such as improving lighting and removing places where criminals could hide.

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