ARTFUL dodgers are operating in Bury town centre.

Now, police are urging shoppers to be on their guard after a rise in the number of reported incidents in and around the main shopping markets over the last few weeks. Although thefts from handbags have not reached epidemic proportions, police are keen to re-enforce the public's awareness of pickpockets.

PC Alex Keen, from Bury's Operational Policing Unit, said: "While Bury town centre and the market does not have a particular problem, there have been a number of occasions in recent weeks where possessions from handbags have been stolen."