West Midlands knife crime rate the second highest in country

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) says that in the year to March there were 3,437 offences involving a blade in the West Midlands Police area, a slight increase on the previous year.

That is 118 offences per 100,000 population, behind only the London Met, which saw 168 knife crimes per 100,000 population.

It comes after West Midlands Police arrested a 20-year-old man on suspicion of murder after the fatal stabbing of Paulius Petrasiunas in Wolverhampton.

The figures show that in England and Wales crimes involving a knife or sharp instrument rose to 46,265 for the year to March – the highest number on record.

In the West Midlands Police area violence against the person went up by 20 per cent, weapons possession was up 19 per cent and drug offences rose by 18 per cent. Domestic abuse rose by 24 per cent.

There were 698 firearms offences, a slight drop on the previous year, while theft and burglary both dropped by 16 per cent and vehicle offences were down 13 per cent.

Overall crime remained stable in the West Midlands, with 260,673 crimes recorded. The figures include 91,650 violent crimes and 50 murders.

Many crime categories are believed to have fallen over recent months due to the coronavirus lockdown, although reports of domestic violence have risen to record levels.

West Midlands Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) David Jamieson said he was concerned about the increase in violent crime and called for a change in approach from the Government on funding.

He said: "The Government seems to be finally acknowledging that its cuts to policing have gone too far, but it still hasn’t pledged to increase police budgets in the long-term.

"These statistics are a wake-up call for the government to ensure that our police forces are adequately funded."

Mr Jamieson said his force has lost more than 2,200 officers in the last decade, but would only get around half of that number back by 2023 under the Government's recruitment drive.

He added: "With more resources from the government and more officers we could do much more

Jay Singh-Sohal, the Conservative candidate for PCC, said: "Despite a record amount of central government funding for the West Midlands, taxpayers are yet to see safer streets, crime reduction, or indeed better value for their money. We need a new and better approach to empowering our police to do what they exist for – fighting and reducing crime."