Further fall in rural community crime rate in Northern Ireland

The number of crimes against the farming community in Northern Ireland has continued to fall, according to the latest figures published by the PSNI.
A PSNI livery tractor at the Lammas Fair in BallycastleA PSNI livery tractor at the Lammas Fair in Ballycastle
A PSNI livery tractor at the Lammas Fair in Ballycastle

A further drop during the last 12 months means there has been an overall reduction of 62% during the last 10 years.

The PSNI has welcomed the new statistics but said police will continue their determined effort to “drive down” rural crime.

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Superintendent Brian Kee said: “While we take the position that one crime against the rural community is one too many, it is encouraging to note that, according to the latest quarterly update, there were 357 agricultural crimes recorded in Northern Ireland from July 1, 2019 to June 30, 2020 – a fall of 30 on the previous 12 month and a 62% reduction since 2010/11.

“Lockdown measures in relation to Covid-19 were introduced on March 23, 2020 and have had an impact on the number of burglary, robbery and theft offences recorded in Northern Ireland. The number of agricultural crimes from March to June 2020 has been the lowest figure recorded for each of these months since the data series began in 2010/11.”

Supt Kee added:

“We know this may be cold comfort to those who have been a victim of crime, however, we hope this goes some way to demonstrate our commitment to working with farming communities to drive down crime further. We know statistics only tell part of the story, they do not account for the severe impact theft can have on a farming business, family and community. We know from our work...that every incident has an impact on individuals, families and the community as a whole.”

Free crime prevention advice is available from the local crime prevention officer by calling 101.