Lamplugh Trust in plea for greater action on stalking
A CHARITY has called for more action to address stalking after it was revealed that just 49 stalking offences were recorded by North East police forces last year.
The Home Office figures, obtained by the Sunday Sun during the week that Trimaan Dhillon was jailed for brutally killing his ex-girlfriend Alice Ruggles, show that only 17 offences of stalking were recorded by Northumbria Police in 2016 and 32 by Durham Constabulary.
At the same time, the number of harassment offences were 7,997 for Northumbria and 4,255 for Durham.
Now the Suzy Lamplugh Trust, which campaigns to help people stay safe and runs the National Stalking Helpline, says the figures do not reflect the true scale of stalking. The charity says more than 1.1m people across the country are affected by stalking each year.
Victoria Charleston, senior policy and campaigns officer, added: “We receive more than 350 calls a month to our helpline and help 3,500 to 4,000 people a year. We don’t think these figures for stalking reflect what’s happening – there are a lot more cases out there. There will certainly be more than 17 in the Northumbria force area.
“What we tend to find is that police officers are unable to recognise stalking when it is presented to them and are unable to identify the crime. It is often put down as harassment, burglary, domestic violence or another offence.
“Stalking needs to be recognised as a course of conduct. It’s a pattern of behaviour and it’s about the motivation behind that behaviour.”
This week, Newcastle Crown Court heard how obsessed soldier Dhillon, 26, stalked and then murdered Miss Ruggles, 24, by repeatedly slashing her neck in an act of “utter barbarism”.
A jury convicted him of murder after they took less than two hours to dismiss his story that she had accidentally stabbed herself while lunging at him.
Dhillon, who had stalked and harassed Miss Ruggles during the last weeks of her life, was jailed for life.
The Suzy Lamplugh Trust said the case is a tragic reminder of how law enforcers need to be better trained to recognise stalking when reported. It also says that Dhillon should have been charged with stalking as well as murder to properly reflect the gravity of his crime, especially as stalking was a great feature in the case.
Ms Charleston added: “Stalking has been described to us as ‘murder in slow motion’. It can have such a major effect on people, not just physically but mentally. It’s a serious crime that has very serious consequences.
“The results of a six-month study by a team at the University of Gloucestershire shows there is a strong correlation between some key stalking behaviours and homicide, and that identifying the intention behind the stalking, and then managing the fixation, may reveal opportunities to save lives.
“They looked at more than 350 murder cases and found that stalking behaviour was present in 94% of the cases. That’s why early intervention is critical.”
Anyone with concerns about being stalked should contact the police on 101 or 999 in an emergency. You can also call the National Stalking Helpline on 0808 802 0300 or Victims First Northumbria on 0800 011 3116.