Crime in council district has risen by 3 percent in the past year

Crime in council district has risen by 3 percent in the past year

18 May 2016

CRIME has risen in Newry Mourne and Down by just over three per cent over the past 12 months.

The newly released annual PSNI statistics compare April 2015 to March 2016 with the same period the year before.

The local 3.1% rise in overall crime is higher than the Northern Ireland average of 1.2%.

The Newry Mourne and Down council area had the fourth highest crime figures in Northern Ireland, with Lisburn and Castlereagh City topping the poll with a 11.8% rise. The top performer this time round was East Belfast with a 4.7% in crime.

Broken down, the local figures show progress in tackling one of Down’s biggest problems in recent years. Burglary has decreased by 15.3% — falling by 137 incidents, from 898 burglaries to 761.

A decrease in robbery was also noted. Incidents fell from 40 to 22 in the past year. Theft is also down 3.6%.

The biggest decrease was in public order offences, down 41.1%. Drug offences also fell by 13%.

Among the crimes showing the biggest increase are possession of offensive weapons (+18.6%), criminal damage (+12%), sexual offences (+11.4%) and violence against the person (+7.9%).

Newry, Mourne and Down District Commander, Superintendent Paul Reid, said he was pleased to note the decrease in burglary and robbery crimes but acknowledged the overall crime increase.

“Even one additional crime is one too many and we will continue to work hard to improve these figures over the coming year,” he said.

“I am pleased to see a reduction in our antisocial behaviour incidents as this is an area which can have a devastating effect on the standard and quality of life in communities. Anti-social behaviour reduced from 4560 incidents in 2014/15 to 4,478 incidents in 2015/16.”

Mr Reid added: “The last year has been a challenging one for us, in terms of the nature and extent of the change programme that we have undertaken and in light of the impact of austerity upon the public sector. 

“We will now use this statistical information to help inform our operational strategy for the year ahead. I would like to ask the community for their continued support. Information and productive partnerships will help us to prevent, detect and deter crime and make Newry, Mourne and Down a safer more confident place for everyone.”