A NEW weapon is being employed in the fight against purse thieves.
Police Community Support Officer Danielle Derbyshire is handing out 100 purse alarms to elderly people at Derwent Hall, George Street, Darwen, on Monday morning.
PCSO Derbyshire applied for funding for the purse alarms following a number of purse thefts from vulnerable people in Darwen last year.
The initiative comes after a scheme which ran at Christmas when shoppers were given warning bells to attach to purses and handbags.
Forty purse thefts were reported in Blackburn and Darwen in the second half of 2006.
However, the new alarms, which attach the purse on to your bag and are set off when somebody grabs it, will be much louder and alert not only the potential victim but everyone around.
PCSO Derbyshire said: "If somebody takes your purse you can hear it. It's a very loud alarm."
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