Sexual and violent crime on the rise

The number of violent offences recorded by Police Scotland has risen 8 per cent despite an overall fall in crime.

Figures published yesterday show there were 4,106 non-sexual crimes of violence between April 1 and September 30 – up from 3,805 during the same period last year.

The increase included a rise in the number of attempted murders (159) and the number of robberies (880).

There was also a 13.3 per cent in the recorded number of sexual crimes, including a 9.3 per cent in the number of rapes (1,159). Overall, however, crime decreased 0.3 per cent year on year, with 125,142 offences recorded by police.

Publishing the figures yesterday, Police Scotland warned of an increasing risk of fraud linked to contactless card payments.