Number of crimes with no suspect identified ‘not acceptable’, watchdog tells Met

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Andrew Feinberg

White House Correspondent

Britain’s biggest police force has failed to identify a suspect in a single reported theft from the person, robbery, burglary, bike theft or vehicle crime in 166 neighbourhoods in the past three years, research by Channel 4 Dispatches suggests.

Programme makers commissioned researchers to map police data from 2021 to 2023 to street level for offences where no suspect had been found, focusing on areas with at least 50 unsolved crimes.

There were 167 areas in England and Wales where police had not identified a single suspect for these offences, 166 of which are covered by the Met Police.

Watchdog Andy Cooke, chief inspector of constabulary, told the programme: “The Metropolitan Police, over the last couple of years, have seen unprecedented demand, there is no doubt about that. However, too often the police aren’t getting the basics right.

“Seeing so many neighbourhoods that have got zero per cent detection rates for some of these crimes, it’s not acceptable. If the chances of being caught are so low, that is not a deterrent.”

In one area around Oxford Circus and Regent Street there were more than 10,000 thefts from the person in three years, with more than 99% going unsolved.

Dispatches, to air at 10pm on Tuesday, will also feature a phone snatcher, who said: “I don’t give a f*** about what the police are doing, I ain’t going to get nicked.”

Metropolitan Police Commander Owain Richards said: “We understand the impact that robbery can have on victims.

“It’s an invasive and often violent crime and we recognise that there is still much more to do to tackle it as we make London safer.

“Met officers are targeting resources to hotspot areas, including Westminster and Stratford, with increased patrols and plain clothes officers which deter criminals and make officers more visibly available to members of the community.

“We encourage people to report as soon as they can whenever they have been a victim of a robbery or theft, so officers can attend the scene and investigate swiftly.”

Mr Richards said the force is working to build intelligence and track stolen items, and is working with phone companies to design out the ability for handsets to be reused.

Analysis carried out by Crest Advisory for the programme used data from 35 out of 43 police forces in England and Wales to map unsolved crimes to street level.

The research showed:

– One neighbourhood in Thurrock, Essex, had the most unsolved vehicle crime, with 1,017 reported offences and 93% going unsolved. Essex Police told the programme that vehicle crime is a priority, that there has been a fall in Thurrock in the past year and they are using specialist officers to deal with vehicle crime.

– In residential streets around Wood Lane in Rothwell, near Leeds, there were 56 burglaries in three years and none were solved. West Yorkshire Police said it has made significant investment in projects that have brought down burglary levels and officers are committed to attending all home burglaries.

– In a 250 metre area around Cambridge rail station, more than 300 bike thefts went unsolved over three years. Cambridgeshire Police said they were working to reduce cycle crime and had brought in several initiatives to do so.

The Home Office said it will recruit 13,000 more police community support officers and will “take a more active role to improve standards in policing so that charge rates increase”.

– Britain’s Unsolved Crimewave: Dispatches will air on Tuesday July 16 at 10pm on Channel 4.