Operation Trident (Metropolitan Police)

For the naval attack of the same name, see Operation Trident (Indo-Pakistani War).

Operation Trident logo

Operation Trident or Trident, is a Metropolitan Police Service unit set up to investigate and inform people about black gun crime ^[1], with special attention being placed on shootings relating to the illegal sale of drugs. The initiative was set up in March 1998 by black people following a series of shootings in the London boroughs of Lambeth and Brent. The Chairman of the Trident Independent Advisory Group (IAG) is Claudia Webbe.

The perceived importance of Trident's mission was such that it was established as a dedicated Operational Command Unit called the Trident Operational Command Unit^[2] within the Metropolitan Police Specialist Crime Directorate. In 2004 it expanded with the formation of Operation Trafalgar which investigates all other non-fatal shootings in London.

The campaign uses gun amnesties and advertisements encouraging people to phone Crimestoppers with information related to gun crime. These advertisements appear in the media, nightclubs, on petrol pumps, telephone boxes and on the radio.

As part of Specialist Crime Directorate, Trident is also known as SCD8 and officers within the command have referred to themselves as "the Ocho".^{[citation needed]}

In 2004 16 of the initiative's 300 officers were themselves black.^[3]

In 2006, Trident officers raided the home of vintage gun enthusiast Mick Shepherd, seizing much of his collection.^[4] At the time, press reports claimed a "huge gun-smuggling racket" had been uncovered, and that guns sold by Shepherd were linked to a number of murders. After being held in Pentonville and then the high-security Belmarsh prisons on remand for 10 months awaiting trial,^[5] Shepherd was acquitted of all 13 firearms offences with which he was charged.^[6]

See also

• Yardie
• Specialist Crime Directorate
• Death of Mark Duggan

References

1. ^ Barkham, Patrick; Henley, Jon (12 August 2011), Mark Duggan: profile of Tottenham police shooting victim, UK: Guardian, http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2011/aug/08/mark-duggan-profile-tottenham-shooting 
2. ^ "Specialist Crime Directorate". UK: Metropolitan Police Service. http://www.met.police.uk/scd/specialist_units/trident.htm. Retrieved 2009-06-08. 
3. ^ John, Cindi (2004-10-19). "England: The force behind Operation Trident". News (BBC). http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/3756944.stm. Retrieved 2009-06-08. 
4. ^ Man in court of huge gun haul, UK: This is local London, http://www.thisislocallondon.co.uk/news/topstories/922846.man_in_court_of_huge_gun_haul/ .
5. ^ "'I was portrayed as one of Britain's biggest illegal gun dealers'", Bromley Times, 2007-7-11, archived from the original on 2007-10-20, http://replay.web.archive.org/20071020094850/http://www.bromleytimes.co.uk/content/bromley/times/news/story.aspx?brand=BMLYTOnline&category=news&tBrand=northlondon24&tCategory=newsbmlyt&itemid=WeED11%20Jul%202007%2013:08:29:253 .
6. ^ Summers, Chris (2007-06-29). "When is a gun not a gun?". News (BBC). http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/6223750.stm. 

External links

• Operation Trident, UK: Metropolitan Police, http://www.met.police.uk/trident/ .
• Stop the guns
• Gangs in London, Piczo, http://www.piczo.com/gangsinlondon . London gang site with prevention and intervention.
• England gang forum, Set BB, http://www.setbb.com/englandgangforu/index.php?mforum=englandgangforu .
• Silverman, Jon (2004-12-31), "Taking a shot at gun crime", BBC News Online, http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/magazine/4135675.stm .
• John, Cindi (2004-10-19), "The force behind Operation Trident", BBC News Online, http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/3756944.stm .
• "Ad campaign to target gun crime", BBC News Online, 2004-10-19, http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/3752910.stm .
• "Trident hails gun crime reduction", BBC News Online, 2004-01-22, http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/london/3421333.stm .
• "New drive against gun crime", BBC News Online, 2003-08-12, http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/london/3143397.stm .
• Casciani, Dominic (2003-04-30), "Did the gun amnesty work?", BBC News Online, http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/2988157.stm 
• Casciani, Dominic (2002-08-13), "Trident: Battling gun crime", BBC News Online, http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/2190483.stm .
• "UK Crime: boxing", The Guardian (UK), 2008-10-9, http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2008/oct/09/ukcrime.boxing .