Eastbourne town centre sees increase in crime reports
and live on Freeview channel 276
On the police data website it says that in December, which is the most recent month with available data, 275 crime reports were received – compared to 267 in November.
The most noticeable increase in reports was with ‘other theft’ offences – which jumped more than 250 per cent from nine to 32. On the data website it clarifies that ‘other theft’ offences include theft by an employee, blackmail and making off without payment.
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide AdReports of drug offences also doubled from four to eight while reports of theft from a person went up 150 per cent from two to five, the data shows.
On the website it says other crimes that saw an increase in reports in December were burglary, criminal damage and arson, possession of a weapon, violent and sexual offences and ‘other crimes’ – which include forgery, perjury and other ‘miscellaneous’ crimes.
Despite this, the data shows that reports of both bicycle theft and robbery more than halved from eight to two. Public order offences also dropped from 36 to 25 reports. Reports of anti-social behaviour, shoplifting and vehicle crimes also decreased.
Inspector Rachel Barrow, of the neighbourhood policing team, said: “We closely monitor crime trends and are aware of a recent rise in reports made to us. We respond quickly to any emerging trends with clear messaging for businesses and the public to help reduce the risk of specific crime types.
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide Ad“For example, Operation Confront ran from the December 1-24. This was led by town centre officers PC Scott Franklin-Lester and PC Dave Elliott, who worked closely with partners to target street drinking, theft and anti-social behaviour.
“We know from this work during December that incident reports from businesses were down by 43 per cent, incidents of thefts were down 23 per cent and breaches of exclusions were down 43 per cent.
“Officers and PCSO’s patrolling the town centre received reports directly to them and crimes and incidents were recorded and responded to at the time, or soon after.
"We will continue to relentlessly pursue offenders, work with our partners in the community to tackle the root causes of criminality and provide safeguarding and support to victims and vulnerable people.”