SEXUAL offences, violent crime and thefts from vehicles shot up in East Hampshire and the surrounding areas over the last year, new figures have revealed.
The incidents of violent crime against a person in the central area of Hampshire, which covers Alton, Bordon and Petersfield, were up 31.9 per cent over the last year, while sexual offences rose by 39.4 per cent and theft from vehicles increased by 31.9 per cent.
The figures, which have been published by the Home Office, show this is a picture reflected nationally as the number of incidents of violent crime soared by 22 per cent over the last year.
But Home Office experts said that the results were exaggerated because of changes introduced to the way that police record crimes. Under the National Crime Recording Standard (NCRS) more incidents are classified as crime and that is why numbers have inflated.
Hampshire police also backed up the governmentÕs claim that the rise was down to the different ways in which crime is now recorded.
In the last year 1,429 people in central Hampshire fell victim to violence compared with 1,083 the previous year, while 145 people suffered sexual offences, up from 104 the previous year.
Robberies were up as well with 45 people being the victims last year, compared to 36 the previous year - a rise of 25 per cent. And there was bad news for motorists with vehicle thefts up from 235 the previous year to 248 last year - a rise of 5.5 per cent, and thefts from vehicles rose from 720 to 950 - a rise of 31.9 per cent.
But there was some good news with household burglaries down from 521 the previous year to 481 last year - a reduction of 7.7 per cent.
The figures also showed that detection rates across Hampshire are among the highest in the country, with officers achieving a detection rate of 30 per cent over the 12 months between April 2002 to April 2003 - significantly above the national average of 26 per cent.
Overall across Hampshire crime levels rose from 135,961 to 152,664 - an increase of just over 12 per cent. While nationally, recorded crime levels rose by around 10 per cent.