A POLICE crackdown on burglaries in Lowestoft will be helped by a new invisible liquid which forensically links burglars to crime scenes and stolen goods.

A POLICE crackdown on burglaries in Lowestoft will be helped by a new invisible liquid which forensically links burglars to crime scenes and stolen goods.

SmartWater, a chemical compound which is used to invisibly mark items and link burglars to the scene, is being offered to homes and businesses in the Kirkley area, which is one of the town's burglary hotspots, and was launched at the town's police station on Monday.

The chemical can be used to mark any item, from scrap metal to mobile telephones, and glows bright yellow when anyone who has touched it stands under an ultraviolet light.

As each pot of SmartWater has its own unique chemical make-up, the stolen goods can then be traced back to their rightful owners.

Det Insp Darrell Skuse, from Lowestoft police, said that all detainees coming into custody at Lowestoft police station are now scanned for signs of SmartWater.

He said: 'If SmartWater shows up on someone who has been arrested, we know not only that they've committed a burglary, but where it was committed.

'This also allows us to targets the handlers who receive the stolen goods. Some identification markings can be easily removed from items, but SmartWater cannot be rubbed off. In fact by trying to rub it off, the person will just spread more of it on to themselves.'

Karen Hubbard, from the Waveney Community Safety Partnership which has part funded the SmartWater programme, said: 'This is a great scheme and hopefully it will make a big impact.

'People who have been burgled are being offered the SmartWater, and hopefully that will give them some peace of mind to know that we are working to catch burglars.'