Crime soars by 17% in one year
One is recorded once every six minutes
A crime is now recorded every six minutes on average in Leicestershire as levels soar by nearly a fifth in just a year.
The latest crime figures just released also reveal that crimes involving knives are at record levels in the area. There was a total 772 selected serious offences that involved a knife in the year to June 2018.
These include offences such as murder, attempted murder, sexual assaults and robbery.
This was the highest number of knife crimes in a single year since published numbers began in 2011.
The data shows the number of serious selected offences involving knives in the police force area rose by 40% in a year from 552 crimes in the year to June 2017.
In Leicestershire, one in every 14 serious selected offences now involves a knife (7%).
As well as this, 7% of threats to kill, 6% of assaults with injury or intent to cause serious harm, 28% of robberies, and 0.3% of rapes and sexual assaults involved a knife in the year to June 2018.
Overall, 84,571 crimes (excluding fraud) were recorded in Leicestershire in the year to June 2018. This was up 17% compared to a year before.
The number of violence against the person crimes has risen by 34% to 23,454 in the year to June.
Within this category of crimes, there has been a 23% rise in the number of violent incidents leading to injuries, a 31% rise in the number of violent incidents without injuries and a 61% rise in the number of stalking and harassment incidents.
The area has also seen a 32% increase in the number of sexual offences, rising to 2,233 in the year to June.
There has also been a 41% rise in the number of robberies, and a 12% rise in the number of bicycle thefts.
Fraud offences are not included in the overall recorded crime figure.
There were 4,129 fraud offences referred to National Fraud Intelligence Bureau by Action Fraud in the Leicestershire police force area in the year to June 2018. This was a 4% rise compared to a year before.
Across England and Wales, there was a total 41,884 selected serious offences that involved a knife in the year to June 2018, the highest number of knife crimes in a single year.
One in every 18 serious selected offences now involves a knife (6%).
Overall, police across England and Wales recorded 4.98m crimes (excluding fraud) in the year to June 2018. This was up 10% compared to a year before.
The number of violence against the person crimes recorded has risen by 19%, including a 21% rise in the number of violent incidents without injuries, and a 36% rise in the number of stalking and harassment incidents.
There has also been an 18% increase in the number of sexual offences being reported and a 22% rise in the number of robberies.
While police recorded crime figures have risen, the Crime Survey for England and Wales (CSEW) is showing no change in the overall level of crime.
The CSEW is seen as a better measure of the overall crime rate, as it asks people if they have been a victim of crime in the previous year, so captures crimes that are not reported to the police.
However, the CSEW, over the past year, there has been rises in some types of theft and in some less common but higher harm violence offences.
This is balanced by a fall computer misuse offences and no change in overall violence, criminal damage and fraud.
Joe Traynor, ONS Centre for Crime and Justice, said: “Over recent decades, we’ve seen continued falls in overall levels of crime but in the last year the trend has been more stable.
“The latest figures show no change in the total level of crime but variation by crime types. We saw rises in some types of theft and in some lower-volume but higherharm types of violence, balanced by a fall in the highvolume offence of computer misuse.
“There was no change in other high-volume offences such as overall violence, criminal damage and fraud.
“To put today’s crime survey figures into context, only 2 out of 10 adults experienced crime in the latest year.”
Fraud offences are not included in the overall recorded crime figure.
There were 288,703 fraud offences referred to National Fraud Intelligence Bureau by Action Fraud in the England and Wales in the year to June 2018, this was a 8% rise compared to a year before.