Safer on the streets than at home - crime figures reveal

Police figures show residents are more at risk behind closed doors in the town than they are walking the streets '“ with two out of every three violent crimes around Bognor Regis happening in private.

In the past year the total number of violent crimes against individuals rose from 975 to 1,053 in the year to March 31, police have revealed.

But those which occurred in public places stayed virtually unchanged on the prior 12 months at 388.

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The biggest cause of the increase is said to be domestic abuse, rows within communities and parties which escalated out of control through excessive drinking.

Typical of the incidents is a suspected case of actual bodily harm after a man was found with head injuries in Victoria Drive just after midnight last Thursday.

Two men were arrested at a nearby house but they were released without charge after the victim, who suffered a broken nose and cuts to his head, refused to help the police.

Police officers at the town's police station are now being issued with bodycams to be able to film the scenes of the reported incidents.

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Two new cameras were delivered last week to add to the previous single camera which had been in use for several months. They replace the single headcam which pioneered the use of the modern technology last year.

Inspector John Merrick, of Bognor police station, said: "The bodycams will be very useful pieces of equipment. My officers are now being trained to use them.

"I envisage them being used every single day. They will enable them to record the injuries suffered by victims of violent crime and the scenes as they encounter them.

"This will help the Crown Prosecution Service decide if someone should be charged in relation to the incident and bring home the impact of the crime.

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"It will, hopefully, also deter some people from committing a crime if they know a police officer is going to turn up with a camera.

"Being worn on a shoulder, the cameras will be more focused by giving a view at ground level than a CCTV camera on a pole above the street."

More police officers are also being trained to deal with sexual offences and domestic abuse incidents in response to the increasing levels of the crimes.

Insp Merrick praised the Arun Angels volunteers for their work in helping to maintain the same-again level of violent crime committed in public.

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The volunteers were launched in Bognor last December to walk around the town centre on Saturdays to act as guardian angels to those who needed support after a night out.

"There are making a big difference," said Insp Merrick. "Without a shadow of a doubt, they are intervening in situations that would have escalated to a crime being committed."

Two teams of four angels are on duty between 9.30pm and 3.30am each Saturday. They deal with 40-60 individuals each week.

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