WEST Devon and East Cornwall have seen a fall in crime numbers over the last 12 months, according to figures released on the Devon and Cornwall Police website.

Across the West Devon and East Cornwall area, a total of 2,613 crimes were recorded this year, down from 2,748 last year, recorded between October 1, 2018 and September 30, 2019.

Tavistock Town saw the biggest reduction in crimes with 98 less crimes recorded than last year, followed by Callington and Stoke Climsland, down 71 crimes and Okehampton Town, down 68 crimes.

Also seeing a reduction were Tavistock Rural East, which includes Horrabridge, Princetown and Postbridge, down 23 crimes, and the Bere Peninsula which saw one less crime recorded in the last 12 months.

Despite an average reduction in crime, some areas have seen an increase in crime numbers.

The area around Tavistock Rural West, including Milton Abbot, Lamerton, Mary Tavy and Lydford, saw the biggest spike in crime, going from 134 to 196 crimes.

The figures provided show that in the previous 12 months there was a tripling in the number of burglaries, criminal damage rose by 146 per cent, while public order offences and thefts also saw a big spike.

Okehampton Rural East saw an increase of 34 crimes, going from 196 last year to 230 this year and Okehampton Rural West increasing by three. Calstock also saw a rise of 27 recorded crimes this year.

Across the Devon and Cornwall force area, 46 more crimes were recorded this year than the previous year, showing an increase of weapons possession, possession of drugs offences and robberies. However, there was a fall in the number of crimes related to rape, homicide, burglary, vehicle offences, shoplifting, theft and ‘other offences’.

The police and crime commissioner for Devon, Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly said the figures underlined the importance of remaining vigilant in the fight against organised crime.

The Office for National Statistics report for the 12 months up to June this year, figures which were released on the same day as the statistics on the Devon and Cornwall Police website that run from October to September, shows that Devon and Cornwall is the fifth safest of 43 force areas in England and Wales.

PCC Alison Hernandez said work to combat organised drug supply was reflected in the figures. She said: ‘Organised drug supply, including through so called “County Line” networks, remains one of the most significant risks we face in our communities.

‘Drug dealers coming from metropolitan areas bring with them weapons and violence and exploit vulnerable people to help them distribute drugs. Devon and Cornwall Police is taking large scale action to combat this — we have invested over £5.5-million in the last three years into new proactive policing teams and in dedicated operations to target specific county lines or organised crime groups.

‘The ongoing increases we are seeing in the number of crimes recorded for drug offences and the possession of weapons are a reflection of that concerted effort, although I recognise there remains more to be done.’

Robbery offences also rose and Ms Hernandez added: ‘While these increases are on relatively low base numbers, and should be seen in the context of our area being one of the safest parts of the country, I am concerned about the continued rise in robberies and I am in discussion with the chief constable to better understand the issues we face and the response being taken.

‘While I am pleased to see reductions in many areas of recorded crime we cannot and will not be complacent. Crime levels remain a concern to me and to our communities and we must continue to do all we can to improve our response to all types of crime. Recruitment of more officers is part of the solution so I am delighted that, in addition to a planned uplift in force strength, we will have an additional 141 officers added to the force through the first year of the national uplift.

‘Despite our chocolate box image we are not immune from drug dealing and organised crime that has taken hold in the country.’

The full figures, which reveal the number of crimes, broken down into crime groups, compared with the figures last year for each area, are available at www.devon-cornwall.police.uk/crimefigures