Rise in recorded sex offences in Hartlepool

Cleveland Police recorded 366 incidents of sexual offences in Hartlepool in the 12 months to June, according to the Office for National Statistics.

That was an increase of 20% compared to the previous year – and, at 3.9 crimes per 1,000 people, higher than the rate of 2.8 in England and Wales.

Overall, the total number of offences reported in Hartlepool fell by five per cent, with police recording 11,309 crimes over the course of the year.

That puts the overall crime rate at 120.5 per 1,000 people, compared to a national average of 81.3.

Other crimes recorded in Hartlepool included:

*4,350 violent offences, up five per cent;

*2,907 theft offences, down 25%;

*1,473 incidents of criminal damage and arson, down 10%;

*123 possession of weapons such as firearms or knives, up eight per cent;

*1,181 public order offences, up 21%.

These were among 5.8 million offences recorded nationally in the year to June.

Nick 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.”