A NORTH-EAST police force has begun a crackdown on bogus crime reporting in an initiative which could be expanded across the region.

Cleveland Police say resources are being tied up by time-wasters reporting imaginary thefts in the street of items such as mobile phones and giro cheques.

Often the aim is to get a crime reference number to make a false insurance claim, or to make demands for crisis loans from benefits officials.

Starting next week, anyone reporting such a crime in Middlesbrough will be asked to sign a declaration form which states they will face prosecution if they are found to be making a false claim.

Police hope the scheme, already being operated by the Metropolitan Police in London, will cut bogus claims.

Detective Inspector Karnail Dulku said, as an example, he had several reports recently of mobile phones being stolen which were found to be fabricated so the owners could be reimbursed or have their handsets upgraded.

He said: "Some of these victims go into great detail about their supposed crimes.

"It's unfortunate that we have to go to these lengths, but officers' time should be spent dealing with real crime and real victims.

"We can, of course, prosecute already for wasting police time, but what we are trying to do is prevent people from taking this course of action in the first place."

Det Insp Dulku denied that police were simply trying to reduce their crime figures, saying: "This is a crime prevention initiative and not about helping our own ends."

Officers have been coached on how to detect possible cheats and posters are being displayed in the police station foyer warning bogus victims of the consequences should they be found out.

A spokeswoman for Cleveland Police said: "We must stress that our intention is not to target people reporting legitimate crime, but to weed out those people who are making bogus allegations."

A number of other forces are thought to be considering adopting the same approach.

A Northumbria Police spokesman said: "This is an issue in Northumbria and we are carrying out some research to look at the scale of the problem, with the aim of addressing it."

He said that police did not automatically issue crime numbers when someone reported a crime, with inquiries often being made first.