Last updated at 09:20, Wednesday, 11 July 2012

A TOP Barrow police officer says violence in the town is on the way down.

DETECTIVE CHIEF INSPECTOR BOB QAZI

Overseeing the CID department at Barrow, and as a senior investigating officer, Detective Chief Inspector Bob Qazi is tasked with leading investigations into serious crime, such as murders and rapes.

He is also held accountable for crime figures, the number of detections, and the quality of investigations.

He said: “In the last 10 years, I’ve noticed a dramatic decrease in the levels of violent crime in the town; just minimal fighting on a Friday and Saturday night,” he said.

“The chance of somebody being assaulted has dramatically dropped.

“But I think the diversity of drug abuse has grown.

“There are now legal highs and different illegal drugs that were not being used 20 years ago. Crack, cocaine – drugs like this just weren’t here in Barrow that long ago.

“But then policing has changed a lot in the last 20-odd years as well.

“Sometimes you don’t see that from the inside looking out.

“With the advent of computers and mobile phones, the challenges for us have grown, because people can commit crime using these means.” DCI Qazi’s claims are backed up by latest official figures, which show there were 592 fewer victims of crimes in 2011/2012 than the previous year across the Barrow borough.

The number of all reported crimes fell from 4,666 to 4,074 – a reduction of 12.7 per cent.

The statistics appear to be heading in the right direction. And DCI Qazi says the public can take a simple step which would reduce those figures even further.

“A persistent problem for Barrow, and this may seem trivial, is bikes, power tools, garden equipment, electrical equipment getting stolen from sheds,” he said. “And it’s basically because people don’t secure their items. If I had one request of people, that would be it – close a shed door and make sure it’s locked.”

First published at 16:08, Tuesday, 10 July 2012
Published by http://www.nwemail.co.uk