Rise in sex offences in Sunderland
Northumbria Police recorded 885 incidents of sexual offences in the area in the 12 months to June, according to the Office for National Statistics.
That was an increase of 13% compared to the previous year.
At 3.2 crimes per 1,000 people, that was slightly above the rate of 2.8 for England and Wales.
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Hide AdThe total number of offences reported in Sunderland fell by five per cent, with police recording 28,100 crimes over the course of the year.
This puts the overall crime rate at 101.1 per 1,000 people, compared to a national average of 81.3.
Other crimes recorded in Sunderland included:
*10,022 violent offences, up six per cent.
*6,946 thefts, down 23%.
*4,579 incidents of criminal damage and arson, down three per cent.
*222 possession of weapons such as firearms or knives.
*3,798 public order offences, down three per cent.
These were among 5.8 million offences recorded nationally in the year to June.
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Hide AdNick Stripe, head of crime statistics at the ONS, said fraud and hacking continued to rise – as criminals take advantage of behavioural changes during the pandemic.
The figures show 61,158 rapes were recorded across England and Wales in the 12 months to June – up by 10% from 55,779 the year before.
Mr Stripe added: “The rise could be due to an increase in victim reporting as lockdowns eased, an increase in the number of victims, or to an increase in victims’ willingness to report incidents, potentially as a result of high-profile cases and campaigns in recent times.”