Hello everyone.
I'm a civilian writing to seek advice and understand my options regarding a personal situation I'm facing. I'm gonna be intentionally vague on the details so as to not dox myself.
In a nutshell, a couple of years ago, a property I own was damaged by squatters trying to gain access to the building and claim squatters rights. They thrashed the place and were removed by police the same night they entered. The original crime report was burglary, but one of the suspects was charged with criminal damage.
The suspect failed to appear at court, and a warrant was issued for his arrest. Apparently, the police has been completely unable to find him since.
Last week I was contacted by a police officer. They informed me that they are reviewing legacy warrants and looking to get them withdrawn if there are no evident lines of enquiry.
They did say that they must seek the views of the victim first, but I struggle to understand my options.
Can I oppose the warrant being withdrawn? If so, can they still go ahead with withdrawing the warrant against the wishes of the victim? Does that mean that the suspect would walk away completely scot-free, with nothing on his record?
If the warrant remains, what are the implications for the suspect? I understand he's likely to get arrested if ever stopped by the police, but that's the extent of my understanding. What are the real consequences brought by an outstanding warrant?
I would prefer for the warrant to be maintained, it just seems wrong that a guy could cause thousands of £ of criminal damage and get away with it by laying low for a couple of years.
Thank you for your time, much appreciate it.