Highlands region sees 6.6% drop in crimes

Published on Friday 29 August 2008 21:40

POLICE in the Highlands and Islands took drugs worth £1 million off the streets last year, the Chief Constable, Ian Latimer, revealed yesterday.

Presenting the annual public performance report of Northern Constabulary, Mr Latimer said that the region continues to have the lowest levels of recorded crime in Scotland.

He said that during 2007-8 there were 610 crimes per 10,000 of the population in the force area, compared with the Scottish average of 819. The detection rate in the Highlands and Islands was 63 per cent, against 47 per cent nationally.

This, he said, meant there were 1,142 fewer victims of crime in the region than last year, a drop of 6.6 per cent.

Mr Latimer also said that drops in attempted murder fell (by 44.1 per cent); assaults (down 30.2 per cent); crimes of indecency (down 15.8 per cent); non-sexual crimes against people (down 24.5 per cent) and vandalism (down 6.3 per cent).