Theft 'decriminalised' as no cases solved in majority of neighbourhoods

Theft has effectively been “decriminalised” across two-thirds of neighbourhoods in England and Wales, an investigation has concluded.

Not a single personal, vehicle or bike theft was solved by police in between half and two-thirds of England and Wales’ 30,100 neighbourhoods from 2020.

Bike thieves have been identified as the least likely to be caught.

Reported bicycle thefts remained unsolved in 66 per cent of neighbourhoods.

Zero out of 305 bike theft crimes were solved in Trumpington, Cambridge.

Vehicle thefts were left unsolved in 59 per cent of neighbourhoods, with just 21,547 solved out of more than 900,000 cases.

Upper Edmonton East and Meridian Water in Enfield witnessed the worst rate of theft of and from vehicles with all 580 cases going unsolved over three years.

Just over half of neighbourhoods, 56 per cent, were unable to solve theft of personal items, an investigation by the The Telegraph newspaper found.

Zero personal theft cases were solved in three years in both Brixton North and Clapham North.

The proportion of thefts across the country which have resulted in a suspect being charged have also plummeted over the last six years.