Hi-tech gloves hold the key to fighting knife crime

Published on 07/07/2006 01:59

METAL detectors that look like gardening gloves could save lives by taking knives off Scotland's streets.

The gloves conceal hi-tech gadgetry which officers will unleash this weekend on people suspected of carrying switch-blades and other knives.

Seven pairs of the specially-designed gloves, costing about 200 a pair, will be tried out for a month in Strathclyde and central Scotland. The battery-operated gloves allow officers to scan an individual for weapons with the fingertips or the palms of the hands. If metal is found, the glove, which is made from stab-proof Kevlar, starts to vibrate at the wrist.

Scottish police have already been issued with 1,000 hand-held scanners as part of the Safer Scotland campaign, but they have decided to give the gloves a try as they allow for people to be searched more discreetly. The manufacturers also say the glove enables police to carry out covert searches as only the wearer is aware when a knife is detected.

Karyn McCluskey, the deputy head of the Glasgow-based Violence Reduction Unit, said: "We are constantly looking at utilising new technology to detect weapons and take them off the streets of Scotland.

"It's important we look at innovative ways of tackling violence, and we are confident that these gloves will allow officers to search people in a safe and efficient manner."