London crime shock as 30,000 burglaries are unsolved in 12 months

Just 1,103 cases - 2.9% - reported between September 2022 and September 2023 resulted in a suspect being charged
Average of 83 burglaries a day went unsolved in London between September 2022 and September 2023
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Around 30,403 burglaries went unsolved in London last year – an average of 83 a day, new Home Office figures show.

Just 1,103 cases - 2.9 per cent - reported between September 2022 and September 2023 resulted in a suspect being charged.

Since 2015, 500 Police Community Support Officers, 32 per cent, have been taken off the streets, said Sarah Olney, the Liberal Democrat MP for Richmond Park.

Her party compiled the data and accused London mayor Sadiq Khan and the government of “political bickering” while failing to tackle crime in the capital.

Ms Olney is calling for a return to proper community policing where officers are visible and a new “burglary response guarantee” under which all domestic break-ins attended by officers would be properly investigated.

Ms Olney said: “Everyone deserves to feel safe and secure in their own homes but so many burglars are getting off scot-free. These figures will bring little comfort to families and pensioners in London.”

Liberal Democrat candidate for Mayor of London Rob Blackie added: “The Met has been left under-resourced resulting in local communities being let down and criminals getting away with their actions.

“No family should be denied justice after suffering the distress and trauma of being burgled.

“People should know that if they are burgled, the police will attend the scene and investigate properly. This is what the Met Commissioner has promised.”

Metropolitan Police Commander Owain Richards, head of local policing, said: “The Met has a renewed focus on tackling burglary as we build trust and drive down crime in our communities.

“Officers are attending more calls to investigate, provide support and advice to victims and are reviewing crime reports to spot patterns of offending and sending officers to these hotspot areas.

“We continue to monitor figures to address any peaks.”

National policing guidance released last year said that officers should prioritise attending the scene of a domestic burglary within an hour of it being reported.

A spokesman for the National Police Chiefs’ Council said that they recognised “how invasive and traumatic it is to have your home invaded”.

They added: “We will always prioritise attending home burglaries and providing support to those victims who may be particularly vulnerable, such as the isolated elderly.

”The NPCC said that police “will continue to prioritise preventing burglaries, targeting repeat offenders and organised crime groups and solving as many burglaries as we can”.

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