CROOKS have been warned the chance of getting caught for burglary has “gone through the roof.”

A crackdown on burglary is being launched this autumn by Essex Police.

Codenamed Operation Meteor, it encourages people to mark their valuables to make them less attractive to thieves and reduce burglary.

It also introduces policing tactics to catch criminals not used across Essex on this scale before.

This week the force deployed dozens of officers across the county to help reduce burglary.

As part of the operation, second-hand shops are working in partnership with us to make property “too hot to handle”.

Every item taken to second-hand shops will be checked for property markings. And every suspect who attends custody will be scanned for traces of forensic marking liquids which are available to the public.

Chief Supt Ewen Wilson said: “When a victim has their home burgled it has a real impact on their feeling of safety and can take many months or years for those targeted to feel truly safe again in their own home.

“Our previous operational activity was a success and resulted in a significant decrease in burglary.”