Homicides decline to 40-year low while reports of rape rise

Unofficial police numbers show murder has fallen to a 40-year low, with 59 killings in 2017-18, one of the smallest figures since 1976. In 2004-05, there were 137 criminally violent deaths.

Reports of rape have risen 22 per cent to 2,136, with two out of five complaints being historic.

John Carnochan, a retired detective chief superintendent, said the homicide numbers were reliable.

He said: “We still have to look at why 59 people died because that is still a high number.”

He added: “I would never want to say that more than 2000 reported rapes is a good thing. But we must see this as a sign that attitudes have changed, that the police and other agencies are more receptive and that women feel more confident to report.”

The biggest contribution to the figures came from crimes of dishonesty. The single force said there were 8,628 fraud incidents in 2017/18, an increase of almost 18 per cent of the previous year.

Officers attributed this to crimes including “vishing” and money transfer fraud.