Suspects accused of serious knife and firearm offences are being released on bail due to overcrowded prisons and a struggling justice system, the head of the Metropolitan Police has warned.
Met Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley said that far fewer defendants accused of knife crime are being remanded into custody, leading to offenders being repeatedly charged and bailed over the same offences.
According to Sir Mark, the toughening of knife crime and firearms legislation has helped reduce serious crime over the last 25 years.
But he added: “An overloaded justice system is not executing on the back of those laws in the same way, as the government has to make difficult choices based on prison capacity and other areas, and we’re now seeing the consequences of that.
“We are seeing rapidly reducing imprisonment for people sentenced for knife crime offenses, knife crime possession, even repeat knife carriers, so that’s going down.
“That is then anticipated at the start of the process, so far fewer are being remanded in custody.
“So routinely now we’re seeing people charged again and again and again with carrying knives, and they’re being bailed again and again and again, and that really concerns me.”
He referred to one recent example of an individual who tried to take what resembled a small sword – said to be around 18 inches long – into Notting Hill Carnival.
Sir Mark said it was this particular individual’s fourth knife offence of the year.
“He tries to take something that looks like a small sword into carnival, and he’s been bailed again,” the Met Commissioner added.
“That is deeply concerning to me, the message that sends, and that fundamentally undermines offender control.”
Sir Mark said the force is also seeing the same pattern with firearm offences, adding: “And I’m flabbergasted by this.”
According to Sir Mark, there are around 34 cases of individuals charged with firearms offences in the city who are all on bail pending trial.
He said that in nine of those cases, the accused had fired shots in confrontation.
Sir Mark said that a few years ago, before the justice system was struggling, this “just wouldn’t have happened”.
