Guest writers

Each month, Crimestoppers invites a guest writer to write a crime-related article for the charity.

Our guest writers to date include Martin Brunt - Crime reporter for Sky News, Roy Ramm - Former Commander of Specialist Operations at New Scotland Yard and Peter Squires - Professor of Criminology and Public Policy at the University of Brighton.

Some of our forthcoming writers include Michael Fraser - an ex-burglar and presenter of TV programmes including 'Beat the Burglar' and 'To catch a thief' and Jim Dawkins - ex-prison officer at Belmarsh, Wormwood Scrubs and Wandsworth prisons.

If you are interested in writing a guest article for Crimestoppers, please email the Web Editor via the contact form.

• Narratives of the perverse - the crimes we can't understand by Stefan Kiesbye

  When it was discovered this year that Josef Fritzl imprisoned and raped his daughter in the cellar of his house for 24 years, the world was in shock. Similarly, the British public couldn't believe it when GP Harold Shipman was exposed, after he murdered an estimated 250 of the patients in his care. Stefan Kiesbye examines how such atrocities happened in our communities that we thought of as ‘normal', and how we deal with such crimes that are outside of human comprehension. [October 2008]

• ‘Essex Boys and the new breed of criminal' by Bernard O'Mahoney

  Ex-member of the notorious 'Essex Boys' gang Bernard O'Mahoney tells Crimestoppers why he's worried about the way crime is being tackled in Britain today, and how he learned that being in a gang is far from glamorous. [September 2008]

• 'Adopt a burgar's way of thinking' by Michael Fraser

  'Beat the Burglar' Michael Fraser explains how to think like an opportunist thief in order to make your home burglar-proof. [August 2008]

• Inside the UK prison service by Jim Dawkins

  Drawing from his experiences as a prison officer in some of London's most notorious prisons, and more recently from his Channel 5 programme ‘Banged Up', Jim Dawkins shares his insight into the problems of the UK prison service. [July 2008]

• Anti-Social Behaviour Policy - Driving fast, running on empty? by Professor Peter Squires

  We entered the 21st century with concerns about rowdy and anti-social youth. Moving towards the end of the decade, communities are panicking about youth weapon carrying and violence. [June 2008]

• Turning down the noise and breaking down the wall of silence on gun crime by Professor Peter Squires

  A continuing problem in tackling gun crime in Britain has been the reluctance of victims to report it or witnesses to come forwards with evidence. The difficulties that the police had while investigating the Rhys Jones murder were not untypical. [May 2008]

• High-tech crime: The new dangers by Roy Ramm

  We've all embraced internet shopping, plastic money and online banking quickly and readily. However, we're fast recognising that with these digital conveniences also lies the ‘cyber-criminal'. [April 2008]

• Ipswich prostitute murder trial by Martin Brunt

  In mid-December 2006, the bodies of five prostitutes were found in Ipswich. On 21st December 2006, Steve Wright from Ipswich was charged with the murders. Martin Brunt reported on the Ipswich murders for Sky News and tells Crimestoppers about Day One in the life of a crime reporter at Ipswich Crown Court. [January 2008]

Please note: Crimestoppers is not responsible for the opinions expressed by guest writers. Articles by guest writers are not necessarily the opinions of the charity Crimestoppers.