BEXLEY is to spearhead new trials of SmartWater, the colourless liquid which can pinpoint those responsible for committing a variety of crimes in the borough.

It will be one of only two Met Police divisions chosen for the trials, with the other one likely to be Bromley.

The trial was launched at an event at Bexley civic offices last week, attended by community safety and other community groups and organisations.

SmartWater is water which has been supplemented with tiny particles of 23 different minerals.

Using specialist technology, the minerals are manipulated to produce a liquid which cannot be seen in normal circumstances, but under ultraviolet (UV) light the particles glow with a unique signature which can be accurately matched to individual crimes.

Working in partnership with Bexley police, the company has given the borough 1,000 free property marking kits plus SmartWater sprays and hand-held UV lights.

It has also kitted out Bexleyheath police station’s custody suite with UV lights.

Police have also done a deal to make SmartWater kits available to the public through the borough’s Neighbourhood Watch schemes.

Already 500 homes in Erith and Belvedere wards, picked because of the likelihood of burglaries, chose to have their possessions marked with SmartWater in September.

And since then, only one of them has been burgled.

Another 500 homes will be invited to have their valuables marked in January, although their locations have not yet been decided.

All the homes and streets where SmartWater is used, will get signs on lampposts and in house windows, warning thieves.

Police have also built up a London-wide network of pawnbrokers, jewellers, dealers and secondhand shops who will receive details and photographs of stolen property marked with SmartWater, to help police track down stolen goods more effectively.

Superintendant Glyn Jones said the trials were all about warning criminals against committing crimes in the borough because of the raised likelihood of being caught.

The new UV lights installed at Bexleyheath police station mean every suspect taken into custody will have to pass through the lights before entering the custody suite.

If they have been in contact with SmartWater on their clothes or skin, no matter how long ago, it will show up and can be traced back throught its unique code, to a particular crime.

Kieran Madden, the company's south east police liaison officer said SmartWater "dealt a psychological blow to criminals who now faced the fear of being tied to the scene of a crime or caught in possession of stolen property".

He said the technology could be used to detect all kinds of crime, including envirocrime such as flytipping.

Kent County Council has already used it in sting operations to catch people they suspected of flytipping, by hiring them to legally dispose of loads of rubbish sprayed with SmartWater.

If the rubbish was flytipped, the authorities have been able to track it back to the contractor.

Smartwater is also being used by security companies on cash-in-transit runs, where the cash, once marked, can be tracked all over the country as it is disposed of, and the robbers identified from the Smartwater sprayed on their clothes or skin during the robbery.

It is also being used to spray people who try to attack or rob bus drivers.

A representative from one Bexley school who was at the meeting, was looking to protect the school from thieves, especially in its IT department.

Mr Madden said the company had developed a programme specially for schools which could form part of the science curriculum and also served as a warning not to get involved in theft or vandalism at their school.

Ray Watson, chairman of the borough’s Neighbourhood Watch teams told the launch meeting: “This is the cheapest insurance policy you are ever likely to get.”

Anyone interested in a SmartWater marking kit should contact their local Neighbourhood Watch team for details.

HOW IT WORKS

EACH container of SmartWater has a unique code.

When someone has their property marked, a list of the details will be made and the jewellery photographed.

The information and photos will then be uploaded onto an new electronic database.

If their property is then burgled, police will know everything about the marked items, down to the smallest ring.

The details and photos will then be circulated London-wide to a network of dealers, pawn shops and jewellers via email.

Any suspect items offered for sale can be passed under a UV light and if SmartWater is revealed the item can be traced back, via its unique code, to the rightful owner.

Sprayed onto the skin or clothes during a crime, it cannot be washed off.

Again, under UV lighting, a suspect can be connected with an individual crime through the Smartwater code.