Crime down in West Midlands and Staffordshire as police set sights on lockdown rule breakers

In the West Midlands Police area crime went down by three per cent overall in the year ending September 2020, according to figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS).

The period took in the first full lockdown and the initial easing of restrictions which followed, and saw huge reductions in thefts, burglary, vehicle crime and robberies.

However, violent attacks went up by more than a fifth – sparked by a rise in domestic violence – and public order offences, which include some lockdown breaches, rose by by 35 per cent.

Since last March WMP has handed out 1,345 fixed penalty notices and 21 'super fines' of £10,000 to people organising gatherings for 30 or more people.

West Midlands Police and Crime Commissioner, David Jamieson, said it was clear that the lockdown had led to a fall in crime rates.

He said that although the majority of people "continue to be complaint" with lockdown restrictions, officers would target those who flouted the rules.

Mr Jamieson said: “Those who, after almost a year, persist in breaching Covid-19 rules and putting the lives of themselves and others at risk are leaving our police officers with no choice but to take tough action against them.

“We continue to see house parties and venues open which shouldn’t be. All of these are a major hindrance as we battle the virus and roll out the vaccine.

“Compliance overall is very good and I thank the vast majority of sensible people in the Black Country for helping the police carry out their difficult job.

“People want to see their lives return to normal, to see their friends and families again. Those who breach the rules are making life harder for everyone else.”

According to the ONS figures, the number of violent assaults went up by 22 per cent and violence without injury rose by 24 per cent, while the murder rate increased by four per cent.

Other crimes saw significant drops, which police chiefs say is largely down to lockdown measures first brought in at the end of March.

Robbery went down by 21 per cent; theft and burglary each fell by 23 per cent; car crime dropped by 20 per cent and knife crime was down by 14 per cent.

A 53 per cent rise in stalking and harassment has been partly attributed to improved recording techniques.

Mr Jamieson, said the rise in violence was "largely fuelled by a significant rise in domestic abuse across the region".

He said one of "the greatest concerns" of the pandemic was that victims of domestic abuse would feel "more isolated and trapped with their abuser".

The force said officers were called to 1,250 domestic abuse incidents over Christmas, and made 191 arrests in the week to December 29.

Mr Jamieson said WMP was continuing to encourage victims to come forward, saying he had increased funding for domestic abuse services by more than £4m over the past year.

However, his office was criticised by political opponents for diverting cash from the Victims Fund from domestic abuse to hate crime services.

In the Staffordshire Police area crime fell by six per cent.

Violent attacks went up by five per cent, although there was a 15 per cent fall in violence resulting in injury.

Robbery went down by 30 per cent; theft dropped by 19 per cent, and there was an 18 per cent drop in burglary.

Weapons possession offences were down 15 per cent, and knife crime was down by three per cent.