Frontline Fightback

Young mum Courtney Slater is dragged screaming from her car at knifepoint in a terrifying early evening robbery in a quiet residential street. But Courtney and her boyfriend are determined not to let the criminals get away with it. Using an app on their mobile phones, they recover their car and help police track down the robbery gang and bring them to justice.

We also see how an intruder alarm with 360-degree vision is protecting businesses in rural locations, including a garden centre in Northamptonshire, and how new interactive police line-ups are helping improve the accuracy of eyewitness identification.

A nurse working in Barnsley Hospital's emergency department returns home after a gruelling 12-hour shift, only to discover her house has been broken into. Neighbours rally round and two local companies step in to fit her home with an alarm system and motion-detecting technology.

Another burglar thinks he has outwitted the police by putting on a pair of yellow washing-up gloves to avoid leaving fingerprints. But he's quickly identified and locked up.

Meanwhile, a specialist Avon and Somerset Police team raid a cannabis factory, and drone operators in Matlock, Derbyshire, lead police straight to a suspected drug dealer who's trying to evade justice.

Detectives in Hull go to great lengths to build up a digital trail of evidence that leads to two moped muggers who robbed an 85-year-old woman on her way home from church.

Paul Pugh was beaten up in a completely unprovoked and vicious attack outside a pub in south Wales. Paul was hospitalised for more than a year and has been left with life-changing injuries. Since the attack, he has been campaigning to raise awareness of the link between alcohol and violence. Now, drink-fuelled offenders are being told to wear an electronic monitoring device known as a sobriety tag. The tag monitors their sweat and alerts the Probation Service if they consume even a small amount of alcohol. So far, the tag appears to be working, with offenders staying sober 97 per cent of the time.

A Neighbourhood Watch group compiles an impressive dossier of digital evidence that helps police identify two wanted burglars. Criminologist Dr Emmeline Taylor says groups like this can be a vital tool in the fight against crime.

Also, we see how a family of four had an incredible escape when the seafront hotel they were staying in went up in flames. Investigators uncover crucial evidence that proves the fire was started deliberately.

We also see how virtual reality replicas of real fires are being used to prepare the next generation of fire investigators for life on the frontline.

Millions of cars are fitted with dashcams, and the footage they capture is increasingly being used as evidence in cases of dangerous driving, like when two cars collided in a horrific head-on smash in the Cotswold town of Lechlade. One of the cars span out of control and hit bystander Nadine Wood, causing her life-changing injuries. Thanks to dashcam footage retrieved from one of the vehicles, it's quickly established that one of the drivers had jumped a red light and had been driving dangerously.

We also see how police dogs are being issued with body armour, giving them the same protection as their handlers.

An Italian jeweller's in Ely, Cambridgeshire, is broken into and ransacked by a masked gang. But thanks to the latest facial recognition software, criminals like these can no longer be sure of evading justice. One company demonstrates how a suspect can be identified even if their face is partially hidden.

Meanwhile, shopkeepers in Clacton-on-Sea, Essex, take a stand against a would-be robber hiding behind a Covid face mask. And police in Telford, Shropshire, hunt down a serial arsonist who set fire to five cars in two nights.

We see how thousands of repeat offenders – including burglars, robbers and thieves – are being fitted with electronic GPS tags, and in many cases their movements are being monitored 24/7. Probation officer Suzanne Bennett tells the programme that, in her experience, no-one wearing one of these tags has reoffended.

Also in this episode, West Midlands Police Sgt Tony Webb fears for his life when a man points what looks like a gun straight at him. But back-up quickly arrives, and body-worn video cameras capture the dramatic events, including the moment the man puts down his weapon and is detained. Footage like this can be vital evidence, and the latest bodycams can be set to be activated automatically, ensuring incidents like this are always recorded.

Police close in on a robbery gang targeting people who buy and sell goods on Facebook Marketplace. The robbers are finally caught thanks to data captured by their electronic curfew tags. The data not only shows they weren't at home, it also places them close to the scene of the crime.

Also in this episode, a father whose daughter was murdered by her abusive and controlling ex-boyfriend launches a phone app he hopes will help keep other young women safe. And the parents of a hit-and-run victim help trace the driver who knocked their son down.

A massive gas explosion rips through a small town, causing widespread damage. Eighty people are injured in the blast, and nearly 100 are evacuated from their homes. Investigators use the latest forensic and digital search techniques to uncover the truth – that the explosion was part of an attempted £50,000 insurance scam.

Also in this episode, a mum turns to social media to appeal for help after her son's motorbike is stolen from a car park in broad daylight.

An ex-boyfriend throws acid into a young woman's face, then uses a series of disguises in an attempt to throw police off the scent. But number plate recognition cameras help prove he was in the area and responsible for the horrifying attack.

Meanwhile, a new online system is set up in Cumbria, enabling witnesses and victims of crime to upload video evidence and send it direct to the police. And a stolen Land Rover is recovered and returned to its owner in less than 24 hours, thanks to a hidden tracking device.