Tech wizards could land themselves a cutting edge role fighting crime as part of a fledgling police team that's already cracking major cases.

The Norfolk police digital investigation team started as a small-scale pilot project in July 2019.

But such is its success, the team is expanding in a bid to free up detectives' time spent on interpreting vast quantities of data, unlocking significant lines of enquiry and targeting high-risk offenders, among other aspects.

Simon Bailey, chief constable of Norfolk Constabulary, said: "The new police digital investigator is one of the most exciting developments in my time here as chief.

"It is an innovative role which will unlock the lines of enquiry blurred from us in the myriad of digital devices we have to investigate.

"Already we have unearthed a likely prostitution ring, identified a suspect in a stranger rape and identified suspects in the courier frauds that have been blighting our county and affecting our elderly.

"And I only have my first five police digital investigators in pilot phase. Imagine the impact when they are fully rolled out.

"I am recruiting at the moment, but this will have a massive positive effect on investigations, further improving our service to victims and our ability to identify offenders. It is truly transformative."

Norfolk police has also partnered up with the University of East Anglia in Norwich to attract some of the most innovative computer science graduates into the team.

The digital investigation team sits alongside detectives and support their colleagues by providing early digital advice.

They also help in the creation of a digital strategy to support timely investigations.

The team was formed following a major review in 2015 by Norfolk Constabulary which looked at its own policing.

And within the first three months of it being formed, the team has recorded 72 digital enquiries from detectives with lines of enquiry.

The digital inspectors use the latest technology during live investigations, which can vary.

A full evaluation of the pilot will be carried out in the next few months and the project will be rolled out to detectives in the east of the county imminently.