Special ops in Wick and Thurso to 'reassure public and target terrorists' – police action witnessed in town centres

Deployment squads of specialist officers were seen in Wick and Thurso yesterday as part of a Police Scotland initiative to disrupt a range of criminal activities including terrorism.

The officers were operating in the towns as part of Project Servator – a policing tactic which aims to disrupt a range of criminal activity, including terrorism, while providing a "reassuring presence" for the public.

A police spokesperson said: "Our Project Servator deployments are highly visible and unpredictable and can happen at any time, anywhere. They are comprised of specially trained uniformed and plain-clothes officers."

Members of the public witnessed teams of officers in the town centres of both Wick and Thurso as part of a coordinated and highly visible operation.

A statement released by Police Scotland states: "We work with partners, including businesses and security staff, to keep Scotland safe. The aim is to make Scotland a difficult place for criminals and terrorists.

"Project Servator has been successful in gathering intelligence. It has helped Counter Terrorism Units investigate and prevent acts of terror. It has also resulted in arrests. It helps remove firearms, knives and drugs from the streets. If a Project Servator deployment is happening where you are, there’s nothing to worry about. They are normal police deployments [that] are highly visible and unpredictable."

Project Servator information:

• They can happen at any time, anywhere. They are made up of specially trained uniformed and plain clothes officers.
• They can involve a wide range of other specialist police resources such as police dogs and horses.
• Officers also make use of a range of technology including CCTV cameras and automatic number plate recognition.
• Officers will speak to people and local businesses to let them know what they are doing.
• They will remind them to be vigilant, trust their instincts and report any suspicious or unusual behaviour.
• You may also see officers handing out leaflets explaining what Project Servator is or posters on display.
• Working with the community is vital to making Project Servator a success.
• The teams also work with partners such as British Transport Police, security staff and CCTV operators to carry out deployments.

The public have an important part to play and should report anything that doesn’t feel right, for example an unattended item or someone acting suspiciously.

• Tell a police officer or member of security or retail staff

• Call 101 (police non-emergency number)

• In an emergency, always call 999.