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Recent blog posts:

Mark Makowski, a rouge locksmith, has been ordered to pay back £7000,000 after a investigation lasting five years into his criminal operation in London and surrounding counties. Mark Makowski, the

Fake bomb stunt asks questions of Olympic Security

Just over a week ago, the team behind the London Olympics held their first official event, the opening of the Olympic stadium. On the surface, the event seemed to be

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Policeman ‘chases HIMSELF’ around streets

An undercover policeman spent more than 20 minutes chasing himself around the streets in Sussex after a CCTV operator mistook him for a suspect. The officer was patrolling an area which has recently seen a sharp rise in burglaries when he was told about someone acting suspiciously. The policeman was directed in his pursuit by the CCTV operator who informed him that he was ‘hot on the heels’ of the suspicious looking suspect, unaware it was actually himself.

The shadow chasing lasted around 20 minutes before a sergeant entered the CCTV control room recognising the plain clothed officer.

The CCTV operator soon had the suspect on camera and everywhere he saw the male, the keen PC was on his heels, radioing in to say he was in the same street. Every time the man darted in to another side alleyway, the PC was turning immediately into the same alleyway – but every time the CCTV operator asked what he could see, there was no trace.

With the sergeant’s sides aching from laughter, he pointed out to the PC that the operator had been watching him unaware that he was a plain-clothes officer.

A spokesman for Sussex Police said today that it was made aware of the incident and admitted they had ‘had a laugh’ when they heard about it – but could give no further details.

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MLA on The One Show discussing lock snapping

There has been a lot of media coverage of The Master Locksmith Association (MLA) and Sold Secure recently following a request by West Yorkshire Police to be involved in a feature being run by BBC Yorkshire on lock snapping which aired on the 20th of Feb. This has been picked up by several other media outlets including BBC Radio 4 that went out nationally. As a result The One Show (BBC 1) has asked the MLA to be involved in a feature which is due to air on Wednesday 7th March. One of the main reasons for the MLA being involved is to give accurate advice and about how to minimise the risk.

Alexandra Locksmiths are offering free security surveys to those who may be concerned about the security of their home.

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London Olympics 2012

I am excited to announce that I have been offered and accepted a role as a games maker for the upcoming London 2012 Olympics. All I know at the moment is I will be working at the Athletes Village in Stratford, East London, as part of the Venue Entry Team. I went for my Olympic Orientation training at Wembley Arena on Saturday, along with thousands of other games makers. More than 250,000 people applied but only 70,000 will be chosen to be games makers. I was lucky enough to work at the Sydney 2000 Olympics, also in the Athletes Village, a once in a lifetime opportunity and I am lucky enough to experience it again but this time in my home city.

I am really looking forward being a part of the team which makes London 2012 the best Olympics to date.

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Postman Attacker in Enfield, North London

Last month Alexandra Locksmith became aware of a horrible incident in Enfield as an elderly woman was attacked and had her car stolen by a man posing as a postman.

The victim was alone in their Enfield home when the attacker struck, disguised in a postman’s jacket and carrying a parcel. As soon as the door opened he pushed his way through and demanded money as well as the keys to her car. He then joined two others and drove off with the victim’s BMW.

As a locksmith in Enfield, Alexandra Locksmith is warning residents of Enfield to be careful about opening the door to anyone they don’t know and if you are concerned about your security, get in touch with us and we can advise on your best security options.

Tags: Locksmith Enfield, Locksmith London, security advice
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An alternate way to protect your home

It might not be the most secure of security solutions but making the small investment in “jaggy” plants might be right for you, or it could & maybe should at the least be a small part of your overall home security.

Many of our regular readers might think we’ve lost our mind reading this, but don’t worry, Alexandra Locksmith have not decided to become a gardener. We are still a locksmith service and a major part of our job is to help keep you secure and improve your home or business security. That’s why we are telling you to plant some “jaggy plants” in your garden to help deter burglars. It’s a simple yet effective way of improving security and it really can put off those lazy burglars from attempting to break in.

Here’s what the Met Police say: “Using jaggy bushes and plants is a way to add extra protection to your home. It can keep thieves from gaining easy access to fences or windows.”

The police also say that if the bush scratches a burglar and leaves blood, they could potentially capture them using DNA technology.

If you are concerned about your home security, contact Alexandra Locksmith. We specialise in security grilles, window grilles and a range of locks including Banham locks.

Tags: Home Security, security grilles, window security grilles
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Emergency Services Prepare For Olympics

London’s emergency services are performing an exercise today in preparation for the Olympics. The exercise is designed to ensure that the emergency services are prepared for any potential terrorist scares.

The scene of the mock attack is the disused Aldwych Underground Station, where emergency services can get a good idea of a real attack behind closed doors.

The UK is currently on the third highest level of alert, which is “substansial” but this is expected to increase to “severe” during the games, which would indicate that an attack is high likely.

Throughout the games London will have an increased security presence, with over 13,500 troops thought to be involved in the security operation that is said to cost £1bn.

London’s local locksmith, Alexandra Locksmith, has been chosen to work at the Olympics. Keep checking the blog and like the Facebook page www.facebook.com/alexandralocksmithsltd to find out more.

Tags: Alexandra Locksmith, London Locksmith
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Front Door Bar Gate

A recent image of a security bar gate we fitted in North London. There are cheaper door gates on the market but in our opinion there is no comparison in strength, visual and physical deterrent and quality. We also use a Chubb 5 lever British Standard BS3621 deadlock.

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Landlords warned on deadlocks after housing act conviction

A landlord of a house in multiple occupation in Bath has been convicted of failing to comply with an improvement notice under the Housing act 2004. The improvement notice previously served on the landlord specified battery fire alarms were not working, there was no fire door to the kitchen and there were unsuitable door locks which in the event of a fire could cause occupants to become trapped. Councillor Ball, cabinet member housing and planning at Bath and North East Somerset council said: “Landlords must ensure that their housing is in safe condition or feel the full force of the law. They must get their houses in order. A worrying trend with many of these cases is the use of deadlocks on fire doors by landlords which turn the house into a death trap. This must stop and we will take action against those who put their tenants in danger.”

So if there is a deadlock on the communal front door and it is locked at night or when you leave the property, you may wish to replace it with a lock which has a thumb turn on the inside.

You must always be able to open the communal front door from the inside without the use of a key.

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Security Grilles in Muswell Hill

Paul from Alexandra Locksmith was recently called to install security grilles at a home in Muswell Hill. The homeowner had some concerns about security in the area and wanted a secure solution that wouldn’t compromise the look of their property.

As you can see from the picture, Paul has installed an attractive security grille on the inside of the property. The collapsible security grille is designed to be secure and to blend in with your home.

If you would like to install security grilles or window security grilles for your home or business, contact Alexandra Locksmith.

Tags: Muswell Hill, security grilles, security grilles london, window security grilles
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London Burglary Hot Spots Revealed

Figures released this week have revealed the most burgled postcodes in London, with Stoke Newington leading the way. The research conducted by MoneySupermarket examined 3 million applications for home insurance across the whole of the UK and filtered the data to show where people had made claims for burglary.

This data revealed that houses in Stoke Newington and Wood Green were most at risk of burglary in London, with over 30 claims of burglary per every 1000 enquires for the two London locations. The next London postcode to feature in the list was Streatham followed by Longford. The full list of London locations to feature in the list is shown below with residents of these areas advised to be extra cautious and take steps to reduce risk of burglary. Installing new and secure locks, including Banham locks can help guard against criminals, as well as the installation of CCTV security equipment and grilles for windows and doors.
Here are is the full list of London most burgled locations:

Postcode	Town	No. of Thefts per 1000 Enquiries
N16	Stoke Newington	33.6
N22	Wood Green	30.3
SW16	Streatham	27.2
UB7	Longford	26.4
IG8	Woodford Green	26.2
NW7	Mill Hill	25

If you are interested in Banham Locks or would like more information on other security measures such as Security Grilles, contact Alexandra Locksmith

Tags: banham locks, security grilles
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