MORE THAN a third of all crimes committed in Gwent over a two-month period were either violent of sexual offences.

There were 5,394 violent or sexual offences out of 14,376 incidents recorded by Gwent Police between October and December last year - an 8.4 per cent rise on average figures recorded for the same period previously.

Incidents of rape, violence with and without injury and public order offences, along with drug offences, burglaries and domestic abuse cases, were found to be above average.

South Wales Argus: Gwent Police

But knife crime offences in Gwent remain the lowest in Wales and the third lowest in the UK, according to a Gwent Police and Crime Panel report. 

A full breakdown of recorded crimes in Gwent between October and December, 2018:

  • All other theft – 1138
  • Bicyle Theft – 95
  • Burglary (dwelling) – 619
  • Burglary (non-dwelling) – 343
  • Criminal damage and arson – 2,293
  • Drug offences – 384
  • Homicide – 1
  • Miscellaneous crimes – 331
  • Other sexual offences – 231
  • Possession of weapons – 54
  • Public order offences – 1,754
  • Rape – 160
  • Rape report (non-crime) – 19
  • Robbery – 64
  • Shoplifting 874
  • Theft from the person – 107
  • Vehicle crime – 906
  • Violence with injury – 1,500
  • Violence without injury – 3,503

A rise in rape offences saw 16 officers retrain as sexual offence liaison officers (SOLO) to cope with the workload.

It is estimated that 22 per cent of the rape crimes during this period were historic.

“There is an assumed increased willingness of victims to come forward for both recent and historic cases,” says the report.

“As a result of the increased pressure places upon investigators dealing with rape and other specialist crimes, public protection detective chief inspectors have been moved to local authorities to work directly with frontline staff.”

READ MORE: £950,000 for charity to tackle effects of domestic abuse in Gwent

An increased awareness of officers when dealing with domestic abuse has led to disclosures by victims that might not have been previously reported, it is claimed.

A spate of burglaries in Torfaen during the period led to a 21.2 per cent spike, although Gwent Police and Crime Commissioner (PCC) Jeff Cuthbert welcomed the approach taken by officers to deal with such issues.

South Wales Argus: Jeff Cuthbert, police and crime commissioner for GwentJeff Cuthbert, police and crime commissioner for Gwent

The report says drug offences had remained relatively stable before an increasing trend was recorded in 2018.

It adds: "Driving this increase [is] a greater emphasis on proactive stop and search tactics when dealing with cannabis possession, and some high level drug trafficking supply investigations."

The report will be discussed by the Gwent Police and Crime Panel on March 29.

Assistant Chief Constable Rhiannon Kirk, of Gwent Police, said: "The rises in crime are due to a combination of factors.

"Nationally there has been a rise in crime, some of this is to be welcomed particularly where there is an increased confidence to report both historic and more recent rape and sexual offences.

"We have invested in our public protection units as we recognise the increase in violent crime that is linked to domestic abuse.

"Our last internal audit of national crime recording standards compliance had risen to 96 per cent due to a focus on ensuring that all crimes are recognised by officers and recorded, a lot of that increase is low level public order offences and violence without injury that we must ensure is captured in our recorded crime figures.

"This report will be discussed in detail at the Police and Crime Panel on Friday."

Police and Crime Commissioner, Jeff Cuthbert.

Gwent PCC Mr Cuthbert said: “These figures may seem alarming at first sight, but, as Gwent Police have explained, there are a number of factors influencing them.

"I have said many times before that the nature of crime, not just in Gwent, but across the UK, is changing. Crime no longer takes place on our streets, but goes largely unseen behind closed doors.

"I will continue to work with Gwent Police to ensure that we strike the balance between maintaining visible policing whilst supporting our most vulnerable individuals.

"My office is already doing lots to support victims including funding the Independent Domestic Violence Advisor (IDVA) service and both specialist sexual services in Gwent.

"As always, I encourage anyone who has been a victim of crime to report it to Gwent Police where you will be listened to and supported.”