Police seek help in stolen file hunt

A DEDICATED team of police officers is desperately hunting for the stolen memory stick that contains “vital and confidential” information — and have appealed for the public’s help.

As revealed by the Chronicle, the device was stolen from an off-duty police officer’s house in Grotton almost a fortnight ago when an opportunist thief struck.

The officer, believed to be working within a crime prevention unit, had his black Volkswagen Golf stolen along with his wallet with the red and orange stick inside. It is claimed he left a door open to get rid of a wasp in his house.

Police are now looking for help from the public to trace the car — registration number MJ58 JVX — and the items taken.

Speaking outside Greater Manchester Police’s headquarters, the force’s second-in-command revealed steps have already been taken to prevent the situation happening again.

GMP Assistant Chief Constable Garry Shewan stressed the public are not at risk as the information refers to “historical” police operations and does not affect current operations.

He said: “We have been working really hard to identify where this stick is and identify who is responsible for the burglary.

“The information is now in the public domain, the story came out and we now feel the time is right to seek the support of the public. If there was any suggestion that anyone’s safety would be compromised, we would have done this in the last 11 days.

“If anybody knows where the vehicle is, or has any information about who is responsible, or whether they know where the memory stick is, I would ask them to contact police.”

The unnamed officer has since been suspended while the incident is reviewed by the Independent Police Complaints Commission.

Police deny the device contains lists of names of people who “tipped off” police but a member of the public has been informed their personal information may have been compromised.