Revealed: How many stop and searches are there in the New Forest?
Police have shared details from January to March 2024
The number of stop and searches carried out in the New Forest in the first three months of 2024 has been revealed by Hampshire Police.
There were a total of 137 searches between January and March 2024 - down from 156 in the previous three months.
In 93 of those instances, no further action was taken, with 15 arrests made, one caution handed out and 25 community resolutions arranged.
The reasons behind the stops has also been shared:
- Seven on suspicion of criminal damage
- Five where a bladed article is suspected
- 76 for drugs related suspicion
- Four for suspected firearms
- Eight on suspicion of going equipped to steal
- 16 for the suspicion of an offensive weapon
- 27 where stolen goods are suspected
New Forest, Chief Inspector Nick Marsden has responded to the figures:
"Our priorities in the New Forest are focused on tackling shoplifting, domestic abuse and disrupting people who are involved in acquisitive crime, with all of our teams seeking to identify any opportunities to do so. Our Priority Crime Team provides support to these priorities, as well as targeting drug networks, prolific offenders and tackling any developing crime trends.
"There were fewer stops this quarter, which can be expected due to the winter months. The data shows you are more likely to be stopped if you are from a minority ethnicity, but it is important to look at this data in the context of the demographic of the New Forest.
"Of the stops carried out by officers, five were of people of mixed heritage, four of Asian people and two of these were of a black person. Two followed a traffic intervention on the A31, near the district’s eastern border, and four occurred during one stop of a car where drugs were found. Overall, 85% of our stops were of white people.
"Nonetheless, this data and associated trends are closely monitored on an ongoing basis. To reassure both ourselves and the wider community, an independent advisory group reviews stop searches each quarter and disproportionality remains under constant scrutiny."