Violent offences caused by web crime hits highest level in 14 years

Official figures show that revenge porn and internet trolling contributed to a 24 per cent rise in violent crime last year. 

 

For the first time in the 14 years since comparative data was collected, the number of violent crimes recorded by police exceeded a million for the first time. Gun and knife incidents, and murders, also rose.

 

Violent crime recorded by police has been rising since 2012-13 after falling from 2004-05, though the latest rise is particularly steep.

 

A third of the overall increase of 202,000 in violent crimes, has been linked to the newly recognised offences of sending threatening letters, emails or other messages on social media, and publishing private sexual photographs.

 

Modern communication made it simpler to commit such crimes and people were increasingly likely to report them, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said.

 

Statisticians said the rise in violent offences in the 44 police force areas in England and Wales reflected improved recording practices but acknowledged "a small but genuine increase in some categories of violent crime".

 

Violent crime covers a range of offences from minor assaults, harassment and abuse to wounding and murder.

 

John Flatley, of the ONS, said: "We think the rise in the police figures is due to the expansion . . . to cover new harassment offences. Second, a greater proportion of incidents reported to the police [are] being recorded as crimes. At the same time, the crime survey has shown a greater proportion of victims of violent crime reporting to the police. Finally, it appears there has been a small but genuine increase in some categories of violent crime."

 

Overall crime recorded by police rose by 7 per cent to 4.6 million incidents.

 

Jeff Farrar, from the National Police Chiefs' Council, said: "We are not complacent about any crime rises, even if analysis suggests changes to recording and reporting are behind these figures."

 

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