More crime recorded in Sunderland

Northumbria Police recorded 27,698 offences in the city in the 12 months to March, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS) – an increase of four per cent on the previous year, when there were 26,723.

At 99.7 crimes per 1,000 people, that was higher than the rate across England and Wales, which stood at 89.3.

Of the crimes recorded in the area over the last 12 months, 1,004 were sexual offences – an increase of 15% from the year before - and violent crime has risen in the area, from 9,777 to 10,778.

One of the main factors behind this increase was the rise in violence with injury, which rose by 22%, from 2,657 incidents to 3,239.

Theft offences fell by one per cent, with 7,015 incidents recorded.

Crimes recorded in Sunderland included:

*1,004 sexual offences – up 15%.

*10,778 violent offences – up 10%.

*3,683 incidents of criminal damage and arson – up 12%.

*518 drug offences – down six per cent.

*199 possession of weapons such as firearms or knives – down 21%.

*3,519 public order offences – down seven per cent.

*7,015 theft offences - down one per cent.

*3,936 stalking and harassment offences – down three per cent.

Nationally, police forces in England and Wales recorded the highest number of crimes in 20 years – 6.3 million in the year to March 2022 - four per cent higher than the previous all-time high of 6.1 million in 2019/20.