Robberies double in South Kesteven
The number of robberies in South Kesteven has more than doubled, according to the latest police recorded crime statistics.
Office for National Statistics data shows there were 42 reported robberies between July 2017 and March 2018.
These can include muggings, as well as more serious attacks such as hold ups with guns and knives.
That figure is up 110 per cent on 2016/17, when 20 incidents were recorded.
Up to a million reported crimes are being dropped with little or no investigation, it has been reported.
The statistics are based on crimes recorded with the police, and the ONS urges caution in interpreting some of these figures.
Some offences go unreported while others may be more numerous due to a change in the focus of the police or greater public attention.
However statisticians said there appears to be a genuine rise in robberies.
Joe Traynor, from the 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.
“We saw rises in some types of theft and in some lower-volume but higher-harm types of violence.”
Overall, police recorded crime in South Kesteven increased between July 2017 and June 2018. Over the 12 month period, 6,638 crimes were recorded, up by 11 per cent on 2016/17.
That means there was a rate of 47 crimes per 1,000 residents during 2017-18, below the England and Wales average of 84.
Gun and knife possession offences in South Kesteven rose by 18 to 71 incidents.
There has been one homicide, a murder or manslaughter. There were three cases of death or injury by dangerous driving.
In South Kesteven theft, one of the most high volume crimes, increased by 19 per cent. Drugs related offences dropped by six per cent.
Criminal damage in South Kesteven, which includes arson and vandalising cars and houses, has gone up, from 884 incidents in 2016-17, to 904 in the latest figures.
While violence with injury, which includes assault, GBH and wounding, has risen, this could just be due to improved police recording as opposed to an increase in incidents.
Similarly sexual crime statistics are hard to judge as many more victims are now coming forward due to a series of high profile cases.
In South Kesteven there were 261 incidents recorded between July 2017 and June 2018, a 29 per cent rise on the previous year, when 202 crimes were reported.
There were also 225 cases of stalking and harassment reported over the same period.
John Apter, chairman of the Police Federation for England and Wales, said: “It didn’t take a crystal ball to predict these shocking increases because they only reflect what we have been telling the Government for years – we need more boots on the ground.”