Stats released on Thursday show neighbourhood crime fell by 14%
Drones and high-powered e-bikes are helping the Metropolitan Police catch and arrest around 1,000 suspects every month, with neighbourhood crime falling in several London hubs.
Statistics released on Thursday show neighbourhood crime – which includes theft, robbery and burglary – fell by 14%, more than 35,000 offences, in the 12 months to June
The Met figures showed drop of 23% (23,311) in thefts from people, 11% (2,943) in personal robberies and 9% (8,737) in vehicle offences.
The biggest crime reduction in the past year was seen in Central London, across the borough of Westminster.
Offences dropped by more than a third in Westminster, with nearly 14,000 few offences during the year, while the Met’s largest crackdown on phone thefts resulted in 13,000 fewer mobile phone thefts across London and numbers halving in the West End.
Met Police Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley said: “The Met is also deploying technology such as live facial recognition cameras, drones and high-powered e-bikes to identify suspects and disrupt criminal activity.
“As a result, officers are now arresting around 1,000 suspects every month, while seizing knives, drugs, illegal e-bikes, stolen mobile phones and other suspected stolen property.”
He added: “London is safe and getting safer each year”.
It follows Sir Mark’s previous calls for phone manufacturers to make stolen devices “unusable bricks”.
In June, Apple announced a global security update making its stolen device protection feature the default setting for users, a move intended to make stolen phones harder to access and resell.
London Mayor Sir Sadiq Khan said: “In the West End alone, we have seen phone thefts halved and 14,000 fewer neighbourhood crimes, following a doubling of officers on patrol in the heart of the capital.
“A new Command Cell in the heart of the West End, funded by City Hall, is also serving as a central point to share intelligence, identify suspects and help prevent robberies, theft and anti-social behaviour.”
He added: “We know many people online and across the world have been trying to talk London down, but the evidence is clear – London is one of safest global cities in the world, crime is falling and we’ll continue working together to build a safer London for everyone.”
