Crime Trends
The Western Isles continue to live up it's reputation as one of the safest places in the UK in which to live. This reputation was again reinforced in 2007/08 by the Area Command's achievement of a detection rate of 88% for all crimes - the joint highest in the Northern Constabulary force area.
Nevertheless, the Western Isles Area Command is kept busy. Recent years have seen a rise in crimes of violence, albeit the occurrence of such crimes remains low in comparison to other areas and virtually all have been detected.
The supply & misuse of controlled drugs within the Western Isles remains a priority concern for the Area Command. Recent months have seen significant successes in terms of arrests and seizures. In January 2008 a quantity of Cocaine with an estimated value of £60,000 was seized, whilst more recently in May 2008 Cannabis Resin to a value of approximately £15,000 was seized from a dwelling in Stornoway.
It is noted that a significant volume of crime reported in the Western Isles is perpetrated by a small group of youths. Vandalism, underage drinking and mis-use of drugs comprise the majority of the offences committed by this section of local society. As such, there is a dedicated Pro-Active Team of officers who assist the efforts of uniformed and crime management officers in dealing with these anti-social activities.
The introduction last year of the Fixed Penalty Notice scheme for anti-social offences/minor crimes of disorder has proved to be very effective at timeously addressing such behaviour and ‘fast tracking’ offenders through the criminal justice system. Over 50 such penalties have been issued in the first 4 months of 2008, with the vast majority been paid. The Fixed Penalty Notice scheme has significantly reduced the amount of officer time spent report writing and carrying out other bureaucratic duties.
A successful initiative targetting road traffic offenders - "Operation Hillman" is the main ongoing project run by the Area Command - designed to educate, deter, detect and report persistent criminals. Speed checks are constantly made in built up areas and near schools with a view to reducing the incidents of collisions and injury in built up areas.
All offences are dealt with by way of Conditional Offer of Fixed Penalties (COFPs)/Vehicle Defect Rectification Scheme (VDRSs) where appropriate. The success of this initiative is reflected in the decreasing numbers of offenders and serious road traffic accidents.