We all know that a heavy police presence, smashed windows and threatening graffiti can indicate that an area has high levels of crime.
But what about the more subtle signs that suggest criminal activity is taking place?
Illegal conduct is not always easy to spot, after all – and no area in the UK is completely free from crime, no matter how wealthy or poor, urban or rural it may be.
Knowing whether an area is rife with crime is essential for buyers moving to a new area, especially those with families.
If you are seriously interested in buying in a new neighbourhood, don’t be satisfied with one recce. Make several visits at different times of day: when children are coming home from school, for instance, and late in the evening.
But what exactly should you be looking out for?
From QR codes on lampposts to ‘clicking’ bikes and multiple ‘For Sale’ boards, we’ve spoken to police officers, gang experts and criminologists to reveal the telltale signs of a crime-ridden area – some more subtle than others…
QR codes posted around town can link to a menu of drugs (though this one doesn’t!)
QR code adverts
Drug dealers don’t just sell drugs on the street. They sell online, on mobile phones and promote their wares in the neighbourhood.
‘These signs can include subtle – or not so subtle – business cards being left in public spaces, or even QR codes posted on lampposts,’ says Ian Broughton, Expert Witness for Drugs and Firearms Trafficking and Urban Street Slang. These QR codes often link to a menu of drugs available locally.
Lime bikes that click repeatedly have likely been stolen
Clicking bikes
Rented e-bikes, such as the garishly green Lime bikes, make a repetitive clicking noise when they have been stolen or the ride hasn’t been paid for. Many young people take these bikes without paying and then use them to distribute drugs, especially in larger cities.
‘Drug dealing is done in different ways now – mopeds, scooters, cars,’ says Simon Harding, Director of the National Centre for Gang Research. ‘Lime bikes are just another transport option for dealers.’
A business that only accepts cash may be involved in money laundering
Money-laundering businesses
Shops that are continually being refurbished and rebranded could be a sign that the property is being used for money laundering purposes. Often these businesses have little to no decor, offer a very small (and unappealing) menu and only accept cash. They often have very little or no marketing or online presence and are almost always empty, even during peak hours.
Cars with blacked-out windows might be being used for illegal activity
Suspicious cars
Car seats tipped back so outsiders cannot see the headrest, blacked out windows and windows covered with towels or sunshades could all be indicators that the vehicle is being used for illegal activity such as drug dealing. Often these cars have people in them for long hours with their engines running – and will return to an address dozens of times a day.
Abandoned buildings might be being used as places to sell or even manufacture drugs
Trap houses
Lots of activity at a certain address may indicate a ‘trap house’ – an abandoned building taken over by criminal gangs temporarily to sell – and sometimes manufacture – drugs. There may be signs of drug use in the vicinity, including littering, an increase in anti-social behaviour, frequent visitors arriving at unsociable hours, numerous conversations through windows, and suspicious or unfamiliar vehicles outside the property. Unusual smells coming from the property could indicate drug production.
‘Increased foot-fall at odd hours, including people not from the area, and to particular addresses or locations can be an indication that gangs might be present in an area,’ says Ian Broughton. ‘It can be any time of the day but especially late at night or early in the morning’.
These symbols denote that a house is alarmed, used by burglars in Surrey
Chalk markings
Burglars are known to use chalk symbols outside homes to highlight which properties are worth raiding. A circle chalking on the wall is said to mean that a wealthy person lives in the house, a circle with a cross over it denotes ‘nothing worth stealing’, while a cross indicates an ‘easy target’. Spray paint markings are also used for this, most often in white or blue.
Vulnerable older people are often targeted by drug gangs who take over someone’s home (picture posed by model)
Cuckooing
Drug gangs often take over someone’s home to sell drugs, known as ‘cuckooing’ after the cuckoo’s practice of taking over other birds’ nests for its young. Vulnerable people such as those with mental or physical health issues, older people, the lonely or isolated, drug and alcohol addicts, sex workers and those living in poverty can be targeted by gangs for ‘cuckooing’.
‘Cuckooing is very pernicious and unpleasant,’ says Simon Harding. ‘I should think every town has someone being cuckooed. It can be very hidden, and it can be good to be neighbourly with someone with mental or physical or other issues in the community, checking in with them to make sure they are okay.’
Signs that a neighbour’s home may have been ‘cuckooed’ include a change in the neighbour’s routine, or a sudden disappearance. Or if they appear distracted, stressed or anxious. There may be an older member of the community who is unexpectedly driving around individuals that seem to be from outside the community. Some victims of cuckooing may even be forced to leave their homes, making themselves homeless.
An area that is full of homes on the market may suggest that locals are keen to leave the area
Lots of ‘for sale’ signs
If an area is full of homes on the market, it could suggest locals are eager to leave due to crime-related issues – or that those who do live in the neighbourhood are transient and are not invested in the community. Often, the number of ‘For Sale’ and ‘To Let’ signs outside homes correlates with the levels of graffiti and crime in an area, according to experts.
Criminals often smash street lighting so that they can work in darkness
Broken street lights
Criminals prefer to operate in darkness so will often smash street lighting so they can operate under the radar. Homes with security sensor lighting, alarm systems and cameras could also suggest break-ins regularly occur in the area.
Internal security shutters on a house may suggest that the area is a crime hotspot
Bars on windows
If house owners have installed bars on doors and windows to stop break-ins, then this is a sign that the area is a magnet for crime and other homes may have been targeted recently. An abundance of locks on one door is also an indicator.
Gangs often use graffiti to indicate their presence to rivals
Graffiti
Gangs often like to indicate their presence to rival gangs through the use of graffiti. ‘Gang related symbols could be a sign of gang activity,’ says Ian Broughton. ‘Gangs like to lay claim over ‘their’ territory and sometimes will mark it as a warning to other gangs not to enter.’ Almost all gang graffiti lacks artistic flourish and has initials or symbols in the markings to identify the gang. Crossed out graffiti could be a gang ‘disrespecting’ a rival gang who left the mark.
Trainers strung over telephone wires can be linked to organised crime
Trainers over wires
Shoes which have been strung over telephone wires are said to be linked to organised crime, signifying the location of gang turf or commemorating the death of a gang member who lived in the area.
Groups in the same type of clothes could be an indicator of gang presence (picture posed by models)
Groups with a unified look
A unified look, such as matching hairstyles or tattoos, or fingernails painted a certain colour, can indicate gang presence. Groups wearing the same-coloured clothes or style of clothing could also be an indicator.
‘These people could be running around on BMX bikes or scooters, congregating in stairwells, or wearing masks,’ says Simon Harding. ‘Some people use public areas to hide in plain sight where people are transient. So hospital and supermarket car parks, transport hubs and sports facilities are common places they linger.’
Teenage boys in hoodies throwing stones from the rooftop terrace of a boarded-up hotel
Furtive gatherings
Groups of people congregating in communal areas like bin stores, clothes drying areas and stairwells, bushes and shrubbery may indicate that drugs are being stored nearby.
Groups hiding out of view can also indicate gang activity. ‘Suspicious meetings between people who appear furtive or are seeking to get out of public view, perhaps to conduct their business, is another possible indication,’ says Ian Broughton.
Gang slang
Particular words spoken within a group could indicate gang crime in the vicinity. These include:
Going country/OT/Going cunch: Terms describing county lines activity, which can also mean the act of travelling to another location to deliver drugs or money
OBS/OPPO: Opposition, as in a rival neighbourhood gang
Shotter: Drug dealer
G: A gram of illegal drugs
Q: A quarter of an ounce of drugs
Youngsters can be exploited into carrying drugs for gangs (picture posed by model)
Local teenage recruits
Drug gangs recruit youngsters to move drugs from a hub, usually a city location, to other markets, such as rural and seaside towns.
Children are exploited into carrying drugs for gangs, often removed from their home area, staying in temporary accommodation and selling – and sometimes manufacturing – drugs.
New teenage recruits will often be in possession of more than one phone, receiving lots of calls or texts, and may repeatedly go missing from home or school and be found in other areas.
They can appear anxious or frightened, or have significant changes in emotional well-being or physical appearance, including a wish to suddenly dress in a particular colour or style of clothing, or sport a dramatic new hairstyle.