MORE than a quarter of criminals in the Carmarthenshire area reoffended within the space of just one twelve months new data has revealed for the first time.
Figures from the Ministry of Justice show that a total of 1,148 adults were released from prison, cautioned or handed a non-custodial conviction at court between July 2019 and June 2020 in Carmarthenshire. Of those, 313 (nearly 28 percent) went on to commit at least one further crime within 12 months.
Between them, the 313 reoffenders committed 1,035 new offences, which amounts to an average of 3.3 each.
Figures show that Carmarthen is among the top 5 most dangerous small towns in Dyfed, and is among the top 10 most dangerous overall out of Dyfed’s 199 towns, villages, and cities. The overall crime rate in Carmarthen in 2021 was 118 crimes per 1,000 people. This compares poorly to Dyfed’s overall crime rate, coming in 39% higher than the Dyfed rate of 72 per 1,000 residents. For England, Wales, and Northern Ireland as a whole, Carmarthen is the 39th most dangerous small town, and the 337th most dangerous location out of all towns, cities, and villages.
In December 2021, Carmarthen had the worst crime rate in Dyfed for other crime, with 7 crimes reported and a crime rate of 0.48 per 1,000 inhabitants. November 2021 was also a bad month for Carmarthen residents, when it was Dyfed’s most dangerous area for public order, recording 28 crimes at a rate of 1.9 per 1,000 residents. Carmarthen recorded 3 reports of robbery during May 2021, making its crime rate of 0.21 the worst for robbery in Dyfed that month.
The most common crimes in Carmarthen are violence and sexual offences, with 888 offences during 2021, giving a crime rate of 61. This is 32% higher than 2020’s figure of 607 offences and a difference of 19.26 from 2020’s crime rate of 42. Carmarthen’s least common crimes are possession of weapons, with 3 offences recorded in 2021, a decrease of 533% from 2020’s figure of 19 crimes
After the latest figures were released, The Ministry of Justice has warned that some prolific criminals might appear multiple times in the figures for one year if they repeatedly reoffend, which could lead to an increase in reoffending rates.
The Ministry of Justice also said there might be more volatility in the data because of the effects of the coronavirus pandemic on the criminal justice system.
It has been demonstrated that around one in five fraud offenders reoffended within a year of their release or their conviction in the year to June 2020, compared to just 13.9% in the year to June 2010, when these figures first began.
This rise was the second biggest of all types of crime, behind violent offences.
Sadly, in Carmarthenshire, one out of 13 fraud offenders broke the law again.
Add Comment