Vehicle crime increases three fold in parts of North Solihull

VEHICLE crimes have more than tripled in some parts of North Solihull, the latest crime stats show.
Figures for the year to date reveal that there have been 128 offences in Castle Bromwich (compared with 42 over the same time-frame in 2016). In Smith's Wood, there have been 95 incidents so far this year, up from 29 over the equivalent period last year.
The most common type of crime in this category involves items being stolen from cars and other vehicles.
Total recorded crime has increased across the borough, with the latest figures revealing almost 1,500  more offences in the year to date.
While increases in vehicle crime have been most notable in the two wards identified above,  the rise in robberies has in fact been most dramatic in neighbourhoods south of the Coventry Road (including the highly rural ward of Meriden). Burglaries too have tended to be concentrated in more affluent areas.
Types of crime where the number of offences has fallen include domestic violence (down from 912 to 859) and Class A drug matters (just 19 have been recorded in the year to date, although this may be in part because of reduced use of stop and search powers).
You can read the full report by the Safer Solihull Partnership here.