Stop and searches up by 25% in Wiltshire
There was a big increase in the national figures as well.
Last updated 27th Oct 2020
The number of stop and searches carried out by Wiltshire Police in the 12 months to March 2020 increased by 25% on the previous year.
A total of 1,552 incidents took place, up by 309 from 1,243 in 2018/19.
Stop and searches give police officers the power to check people and vehicles without having a warrant.
The new figures are also broken down into the reasons why the search has been made.
BREAKDOWN
The complete numbers from Wiltshire look like this:
2018/19
- Stolen property - 88
- Drugs - 775
- Firearms - 8
- Offensive weapons - 145
- Going equipped - 85
- Criminal damage - 24
- Other -118
2019/20
- Stolen property - 108
- Drugs - 1,137
- Firearms - 9
- Offensive weapons - 150
- Going equipped - 83
- Criminal damage - 20
- Other - 45
The new statistics released by the Home Office also show the breakdown by ethnic minority groups.
Using population data from the 2011 census, it shows people from black, asian or mixed ethnic backgrounds (BAME) are 5 times more likely to be stopped and searched than white people in Wiltshire.
Meanwhile, BAME people in the county are also 6 times more likely to be arrested from stop and search incidents.
A Wiltshire Police spokesman said:
“We acknowledge the increased use of stop and search and we understand that this is replicated in other Force areas.
Arguably, this is the combination of a number of factors. For example, we experienced a drop in demand during the initial period of lockdown. This reduction provided our officers with an enhanced capacity to provide a consistent visible presence in our communities and conduct police operations.
Also, over the past 12 months Wiltshire Police has been committed to intelligence-led policing. We have seen an increase in reported intelligence which helps our community policing teams understand where criminal activity is occurring. This understanding enables officers to carry out focused and intelligence-led patrol plans.
We believe that the combination of intelligence-led patrols, proactive policing operations and the enhanced capacity has led to this increase. The volume of stop and searches being undertaken in recent weeks has returned to the levels we previously experienced.
We understand that stop and search powers are intrusive. If used effectively they remain a legitimate way of preventing crime. However, we recognise that its use can have a lasting impact on the communities we serve. It is for this reason that we continue to promote transparency which includes body worn cameras, sharing information on where our powers are used and the introduction of independent scrutiny arrangements.”
NATIONAL FIGURES
The number of stop and searches carried out across England and Wales hit it's highest number for seven years.
558,973 took place, more than a 50% increase on the previous 12 months.
While people from BAME backgrounds are nine times as likely to be stopped on a national scale.
Around the country, drug searches are the most common, followed by offensive weapons.
You can see the full figures by going to the Government website.