Carry on thieving... top cops blame soft judges for crimewave

THIEVES are being ‘ encouraged’ to pursue lives of crime because the courts won’t send t hem to jail , according to police chiefs.

An official report seen by The Mail on Sunday reveals concerns about a ‘vicious cycle’ which has seen judges and magistrates increasingly reluctant to lock up crooks due to overcrowding in the prison system.

The warning features in a report by Hertfordshire Constabulary and is endorsed by Charlie Hall, its Chief Constable.

The Force Management Statement, published last week, says: ‘There is strong evidence that the general lack of prison capacity is having an effect on remand decisions/ sentencing, potentially leading to a vicious cycle of lower (even medium) level offending not being curtailed and, potentially, even implicitly encouraged ( the risk versus reward equation being skewed towards the latter).

‘There are multiple examples of this, particularly for lower level acquisitive crime by repeat, high-volume offenders for shop- lifting and vehicle crime.’ In another s ecti on s et t i ng out future risks, the report warns: ‘Lack of credible court sentencing options for acquisitive criminals and the focus on prison sentences greater than one year will not provide respite to the public with regards to, in particular, acquisitive criminals whose offending often make up l arge crime volumes ( motor vehicle / shoplifting / burglary).’

Hertfordshire recorded an 11.8 per cent year- on- year rise in crime in 2017-18, including a 6.5 per cent increase in shoplifting, a 32.6 per cent increase in house burglaries and 40.8 per cent more car thefts. Just five per cent of car thefts and the same proportion of burglaries led to a ‘criminal justice outcome’ – including convictions and out-of-court punishments – and only 38.6 per cent of shop thefts were cleared up.

Hertfordshire police declined to comment but the report will deepen fears about a lawless Chief Constable Hall ‘Wild West Britain’ where crimes are going unpunished.

Earlier this month, the MoS revealed the concerns of Merseyside Police about a secret Government policy to avoid locking up dangerous criminals to keep the prison population down.

Figures from the Ministry of Justice support Hertfordshire’s assessment that few shoplifters are jailed despite the maximum sentence of seven years available to judges. Of those dealt with in court, barely one in five was jailed in 2016.

Retailers believe shoplifters are exploiting laws that allow those who steal goods worth less than £200 to be dealt with in a magistrates’ court, where the maxi mum p r i s o n term is six months.

The Hertfordshire report also warns that crime levels may rise if Brexit hits the economy.

‘There is some evidence to suggest, in the wake of global financial instability ( including the unknown impact of Brexit) that any substantial price rises would i ncrease burglary, theft and theft of fuel from petrol stations,’ it says.

Harry Fletcher, of the Victims’ Rights Campaign, said: ‘If criminals think they will get caught, they won’t commit crime, but we’re getting to a point where there is virtually no deterrent.

‘ This shocking report shows that criminals are being given the green light and this is another insult to victims.’