Dear FIOS L&B Unit,

I write in regards the FOIS Request entitled "Operation Gladiator" as requested by WhatDoTheyKnow.com user "Oysterman". 

I can confirm that I am** ********** ********* and I am Oysterman. For the purposes of the act this e-mail address is my address, however, I request if possible that any reply is addressed to "Oysterman" if it is posted on the WhatDoTheyKnow.com website as to protect my privacy. 

Thank you. 

LB Police response to Oysterman:

Dear ** *********** **********

REQUEST FOR INFORMATION;
FREEDOM OF INFORMATION (SCOTLAND) ACT 2002

Thank you for your email received 28 August 2012 seeking information. I appreciate you providing your name on 03 September 2012.

For ease, I will answer each question in the order you have asked;

    1.How many neo-Nazi/facist orientated graffiti was detected or reported by Operation Gladiator before it was disbanded.

I can confirm Operation Gladiator only operated within the Scottish Borders between May 2001 to May 2011. Unfortunately, I am unable to provide this level of data as the information may or may not be held within the crime report created for each incident. The only way to obtain reliable statistics is to manually read every crime report created within the Scottish Borders between May 2001 to May 2011 to ascertain if, firstly, there was a religious / race element to the offence, before identifying whether it fell within the remit of your request. Due to the volume of reports created annually, checking each one would place your request outwith the cost limits of the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002, and Section 12, Excessive Cost of Compliance would apply.

    2.How many crimes are known within the territory to have involved or suspected to involve fascist/neo-Nazi/combat 18 activity/The BNP between 2002 - 2012.

Unfortunately, I am unable to provide this level of data as the information may or may not be held within the crime report created for each incident. The only way to obtain reliable statistics for the 2008 - 2012 period would be to read every crime report to ascertain if, firstly, there was a religious / race element to the offence, before identifying whether it fell within the remit of your request. Due to the volume of reports created annually, checking each one would place your request outwith the cost limits of the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002, and Section 12, Excessive Cost of Compliance would apply.

    3. How many crimes took place within the territory with an anti-Semitic or anti-catholic characteristic between 2002 - 2012.

Please note that the terms above are not recognised mandatory hate crime descriptors on our crime recording system. 

However, relevant offences would be recorded under the 'Faith' and 'Religion or Belief' aggravators. 
Please see attached spreadsheet for information and note the following caveats to the information provided:

* These figures relate to the number of crime reports created, rather than individual incidents. To explain, if an individual was identified as racially abusing and assaulting a complainer, a crime report would be created in relation to every crime type committed. Therefore the number of crime reports may be higher than the number of accused involved, or the number of cases that resulted.
* On 1st April 2010, the updates were made to the hate crime strands on our crime recording system to take into account the introduction of the Offences (Aggravation by Prejudice) Scotland Act 2009. As a result, the 'Faith' aggravator was renamed 'Religion or Belief' and I have provided statistics for both types of aggravators on the same page of the attached spreadsheet - I have also separated them by dates.
* I am unable to provide reliable figures from 2002 to 2008, as such crimes are not recorded in the same way as we do now. To explain, hate crime aggravators did not become mandatory on our crime system until mid-2008, and as a result any figures retrieved would be unreliable and could not be accurately compared with those from latter years. However, I have provided figures from 01 June 2008 - 28 August 2012 (the date your request was received) as recorded on our Crime Recording system with aggravators recorded for various different offences.

Unfortunately, I am unable to provide a break down of specific types of religious hatred as this information may or may not be held within the Modus Operandi pages of each crime reported. Unfortunately, the only way to obtain reliable statistics for the 2008 - 2012 period would be to read every crime report created to ascertain if, firstly, there was a religious element to the offence, before identifying whether it fell within the remit of your request. Due to the volume of reports created annually, checking each one would place your request outwith the cost limits of the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002, and Section 12, Excessive Cost of Compliance would apply.

    4. How many other anti-religious crimes have taken place between 2002 - 2012 within the territory.
Please see answer to question 3

    5. How many racist crimes have taken place within the territory between 2002 - 1012.
Please see attached spreadsheet under the page titled; Race

    6. Under what police divisions were most of these detection/reports take place as outlined within 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5.
Please see attached spreadsheet

   7. A specific breakdown of statistics in regards questions 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 for division G.
Please see the page titled; G Div - Scottish Borders of the attached spreadsheet

I trust this information is of use. If you have any questions about the above or I can help in any other way, please do not hesitate to get in touch with me again.  However, under the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002, you have the right to appeal if you are dissatisfied with the way in which we have dealt with your enquiry. This should be done within 40 working days of receiving this email.  If you wish to appeal please contact Rachel Watson, Head of Force Information Unit, Lothian and Borders Police, Police Headquarters, Fettes Avenue, Edinburgh, EH4 1RB.   Please note that subsequent to this internal review there is a right of appeal to the Scottish Information Commissioner, Kinburn Castle, Doubledykes Road, St Andrews, Fife, KY16 9DS.

Yours Sincerely

Paul Wallace
Force Information Unit
Lothian and Borders Police

I have ask LB police to post the attached files mentioned in the letter. However, if this is not possible LB Police publish all FOIS requests with answers they recieve one month later. So I shall post a link in due course.

I can confirm that Oysterman reported one incident of a swastika being enscribed upon a piece of council property in police division G, during 2007. The police attended and confirmed the inscription although the swastika was the wrong way round, it appeared not to be a Hindu symbol.

Police traced the suspect.

Break down by Police Divisional Area;

CRIME COUNT WITH RACIAL COMPONENT

A' Div - The City of Edinburgh 4,975

E' Div - East and Mid Lothian 482

F' Div - West Lothian 803

G' Div - Scottish Borders 190

K' Div - Reported to this force, but crime committed outwith 6

Total 6,456

http://www.lbp.police.uk/files/Informati...

Nice to see the Scottish government are fighting anti-religious crime by taking out the word ‘faith’….

http://www.fixmystreet.com/report/313069

This similar but poor attempt at a neo-nazi 'incident' happened outside a catholic primary school in Selkirk. Needless to say police did not give one jot about my protestations against other peoples 'opinions' and have left it up to the council to remove.