Rise in violent crime in Northumberland

Northumbria Police recorded 9,067 incidents of violent crime in the area in the 12 months to June, according to the Office for National Statistics.

That was an increase of 10% compared to the previous year and a rate of 28.0 crimes per 1,000 people – below the national rate of 31.6.

One of the main factors behind the increase in Northumberland was the rise in stalking and harassment, which rose by 19% to 3,552.

Offences of violence with injury increased by eight per cent and violence without injury by two pet cent – reaching 2,429 and 3,083 respectively.

There were two homicides, which include murders and manslaughters, down by one on the previous 12 months.

Other crimes recorded in Northumberland included:

*856 sexual offences, up 10%.

*4,742 thefts, down 28%.

*3,423 incidents of criminal damage and arson, up three per cent.

*551 drug offences, up 34%.

*163 possession of weapons such as firearms or knives, up four per cent.

*3,120 public order offences, up two per cent.

These were among 5.8 million offences recorded nationally in the year to June.

Nick Stripe, head of crime statistics at the ONS, said fraud and hacking continued to rise – as criminals take advantage of behavioural changes during the pandemic.

The figures show 61,158 rapes were recorded across England and Wales in the 12 months to June – up by 10% from 55,779 the year before.