Crime Log: September 2009

Release Date: September 2009

Affirming all the great work that is being done in the bay, the figures (see supporting document) show an overall reduction across all areas.

Over the last three months, a great deal of effort has been centred around targeting a small number of individuals known to be committing the vast majority of crimes across Torbay. This activity has borne massive successes and by the gathering of intelligence and evidence against these individuals, has secured rightful convictions in court.

In Paignton we have seen a drop across the board in both vehicle crime and domestic burglary. This type of crime is mostly committed by substance dependents who may be forced to steal in order to fund their habits. In addition to on-going crime prevention operations in the area, the drop in numbers of offences can also be attributed to an operation that aims to target drug-related behaviour across the bay. Operation Fundamental aims to disrupt the supply of illegal substances in Torbay by working jointly with the community, encouraging people to come forward with information that would aid the authorities in putting a robust case together against offenders.

Torbay Supt Richard Baker says; ‘The results are very encouraging but do not happen by accident. There have been significant efforts made to arrest and convict those known to be prolific offenders, who although small in number, are responsible for the vast majority of these crimes. We are making real progress in disrupting the supply of class A drugs in Torbay and would urge the public to continue to report all suspicious activity for us to follow up’.

Anti-social behaviour (asb) reports still remain lower than last year in spite of the public awareness campaign by Safer Communities Torbay encouraging residents to come forward and convey information via a dedicated ASB Hotline, suggesting that perhaps actual ‘accounts’ of asb are falling.

Spikes in domestic burglaries can be attributed to a small number of individuals who have persistently been re-offending across the bay. In response to this, we instigated targeted activity in the affected areas and are pleased to announce that we have seen several prosecutions as a result.

The ward of Tormohun (encompassing Torquay town centre) has shown a substantial decrease in total crime figures which is a direct result of several operations in the area targeting specific priority concerns raised by the community. Initiatives like the Anti-Begging Campaign (set up after local residents and business operators brought to our attention the anxiety they and their customers experienced when repeatedly approached by aggressive beggars in the town centre), Operation Roxbury (targeted around Castle Circus dealing with quality of life issues such as drug use/dealing and street drinking) and the on-going deployment of the Night-time Economy Team have all contributed to the low crime figures and ensuring Torbay remains a safe place to live and visit.

N.B

Violent crimes should include all crimes in the following categories:

• Homicides
• Serious Assaults
• Other Assault
• Common Assaults
• Harassment
• Other Violence
• Sexual Offences
• Robbery

ENDS

• Crime Log
  Details of the crime level statistics for Torbay (September 2009).
  Last updated: 30/04/2010 (46 KB)