Only ONE suspect is identified for every 10 burglaries in the West Midlands
Only one suspect is identified for every 10 burglaries that take place in the West Midlands, shocking statistics have revealed.
A suspect was not found in 90 per cent of burglary cases in the region, while in 71 per cent of robberies, dangerous attackers got away without attracting the suspicion of police.
Figures showed that no suspect was identified in more than half of the 206,000 crimes recorded in 2016/17 in the West Midlands.
There were 125,712 crimes where no suspect was put forward by officers - 61 per cent of the total.
It put West Midlands Police among the poorest performing forces in terms of identifying suspects. Only Greater Manchester Police, City of London Police and the British Transport Police had worse records.
In Staffordshire the total was 41 per cent, 31,796 out of 77,619.
It was also revealed that drivers who have their cars stolen in the West Midlands are least likely to see an arrest, with police failing to identify suspects in nine out of 10 cases.
Greater Manchester is the only place where burglars are less likely to be caught, according to the figures, while London, Greater Manchester and Merseyside performed poorer than the West Midlands for bringing robbers to justice.
Dudley councillor and UKIP MEP Bill Etheridge blamed the performance on a 'lack of resources'.
He said: "It is not surprising, although it is extremely disappointing.
"I suffered a burglary myself and nothing ever came of it. It is a lack of resources, a lack of numbers and a lack of emphasis on tackling crime and having police as social workers.
"People want old-fashioned policing back."
Police forces have argued that many crimes continued to be investigated, meaning suspects are often identified at a later date.
It comes after it was revealed more than 60 burglaries have taken place across the West Midlands since October, with 50 of them thought to be linked.
A police taskforce has been launched to try and tackle the crime wave which has seen gangs demand valuables and threaten their victims with violence.
A Home Office spokesman said: "We are clear that all crimes reported to police should be taken seriously, investigated and, where appropriate, taken through the courts and met with tough sentences."
