Tyrone crime statistics reveal notable decline

THE three councils covering Tyrone have seen a decrease in crimes, according to new statistics released by the PSNI.

Crime across Northern Ireland was down overall by 6.3 per-cent from 2022/23, equating to nearly 600 fewer crimes every month.

The sharpest fall came in Mid Ulster, where overall crime plummeted by a substantial 13.5 per-cent. Crime also decreased in the Fermanagh and Omagh Council areas by 1.5 per-cent, and in Derry City and Strabane by 0.5 pr-cent.

These annual figures provide an insight into recorded numbers around crime, anti-social behaviour, domestic abuse, hate-motivated crime and drug seizures.

The largest decrease was in stalking and harassment, with smaller decreases noted in violence with and without injury.

Anti-social behaviour is at a record low with 45,358 incidents reported across the North, a decrease of 1,943 incidents (or 4.1 per-cent) compared to the previous 12 months. However, there was a rise in possession of weapons offences and shoplifting offences.

Deputy Chief Constable Chris Todd said, “These very welcome reductions should come as reassurance to the public that Northern Ireland remains one of the safest parts of the UK to live, work and do business.

“These efforts are all the more remarkable given the significant resource pressures which our officers and staff have found themselves working under throughout this period.

“My colleagues have proven yet again that despite resource challenges, they continue to do their best to keep people safe.”

He added, “While the overall decrease in crime is welcome, we are never complacent. There are some areas of concern particularly relating to hate-motivated incidents and shoplifting.

“We also continue to proactively track reports of violence, abuse and intimidation against women and girls, and targeting neighbourhood policing resources to locations where they have reported feeling unsafe.

“As a result, we are arresting, on average, 73 people a month for the new domestic abuse offence, 15 people for stalking and since new legislation was introduced in June 2023, 77 people for non-fatal strangulation.”