WILD WEST LONDON

After Michael McIntyre mugging, phone robbery woman fights for life ++ 60 moped attacks reported every day ++ Knife gang raids West End store ++ Drug crime on rise in most big cities

Britain is in the grip of a violent crime wave as thugs run riot on mopeds and motorbikes.

Shocking figures released yesterday show the armed thieves are striking more than 60 times every day.

In a chilling illustration of the crisis, a young woman was fighting for her life last night after her mobile was snatched by moped-riding thieves. And a motorcycle gang targeted yet another luxury store in London yesterday.

Campaigners and politicians warned the attacks were matched by disturbing rises in stabbings, drug crime and gang violence.

London now has a higher murder rate than New York, with more than 70 killings so far this year. Knife crime has also led to the deaths of a 17-year-old boy in Ipswich and of 15-yearolds in Sheffield and Wolverhampton.

As an MP said parts of the country were becoming ‘like the Wild West’:

Scotland Yard has logged 22,025 motorcycle muggings in 12 months – a rise of 50 per cent;

Officers revealed that city gangs had set up 650 ‘county line’ networks to sell drugs in towns and villages;

Police were hunting moped robbers who targeted comedian Michael McIntyre;

A rank-and-file police leader said officers

were wary of chasing them for fear of possible disciplinary action;

A think-tank said shop theft cost £6.3billion last year – or £270 for every household.

Violent crime soared by 21 per cent last year, with 1.3million offences recorded by police. The figure was the highest since records began in their current form 15 years ago.

Knife crime rose by 22 per cent, robberies by a third and sex attacks were up by a quarter as police recorded 5.4million offences, 13 per cent up on the previous year.

‘It is alarming that violent crime in England is rising so fast,’ said Ed Davey, the Liberal Democrat home affairs spokesman. ‘People are telling me they no longer feel safe in their own communities.

‘For some areas it’s fast becoming like the Wild West with criminals no longer afraid of getting caught. The blame rests squarely at the feet of this Government. Theresa May was responsible for slashing police budgets and even now she appears to be resisting calls for extra spending on police.’

David Green, of the Civitas think-tank, said: ‘A fall in police numbers combined with increasingly violent drug gangs has meant some parts of our cities resemble TV’s The Wire. Violent crime is rising and knife crime is rising as gangs fight over drug territories.’

Experts believe a booming illicit drugs market – notably in crack cocaine – is fuelling much of the violence. They have also highlighted the middle- class appetite for regular cocaine.

The Metropolitan Police figures showed that crimes committed using mopeds, scooters and motorcycles soared by 50 per cent in the year to May, to 22,025.

The 24-year-old who is fighting for her life was attacked by two thugs on a moped in Edgware, north London, just after 9pm on Monday. She suffered a head injury and was found unconscious on the ground.

McIntyre was also targeted in north London, while picking his son up from school on Monday. The moped muggers made off with his watch and are thought to have been watching his movements.

Rory Geoghegan, of the Centre for Social Justice, called on frontline police to get a grip. The think-tank published a report today highlighting how heroin, crack cocaine and synthetic drugs drive shop thefts.

‘Our criminal justice system is in desperate need of a fix,’ he said.

The Police Federation called for the bringing forward of legislation to protect police from claims if they pursue crooks.

Sergeant Tim Rogers said many officers still feared being charged with careless or reckless driving.