Alcohol fuels half of the arrests in 2018
NEARLY half of people arrested in Guernsey last year and taken into custody were under the influence of alcohol.
The 2018 annual report of Bailiwick Law Enforcement reveals that 1,347 people were taken into custody, and of that number, 514 were easily identified as being under the influence of drink.
Violence against another person was the most common category of recorded crime, with 715 reported offences.
This included 415 common assaults, 46 assaults on police officers, and 123 cases of harassment.
Many of the assaults took place on Friday and Saturday nights in Town, and alcohol was a prominent feature.
The latest statistics show there were 140 drugs offences in 2018, 110 sexual offences, and 107 burglaries of homes and businesses.
Illegal drug seizures totalled £158,668, and two organised crime groups were seriously disrupted in drug trafficking and money laundering.
Three local syndicates were also dismantled in relation to drug trafficking activities.
There were 64 recorded police firearms deployments and 23 Taser deployments, and in all of those cases nothing was fired or discharged.
During the course of the last 12 months, 12,294 calls were made to the police.
Head of law enforcement Ruari Hardy said the statistics showed the huge variety of work they undertake.
‘It gives a real strong indication of the work that’s gone on across the organisation in 2018, the organisation is phenomenal in the breadth of things that it covers, from the borders to policing the night-time economy, to safeguarding mental health, trading standards, and economic crime.
‘If you look at the numbers of staff who are employed across Law Enforcement and the variety of work and the service that is given to the public with the resources that we have, my personal view is that we deliver a first-class service and it is a quality of service that makes us the envy of a lot of other jurisdictions.’
Whilst overall crime figures have risen, Mr Hardy stressed that the risk of becoming a victim of crime in Guernsey remains low.
‘Guernsey is a very safe place. We’re working, as ever, to prevent crime in our community, but I want to reassure the public that there is a very dedicated workforce across Law Enforcement.
‘The vision going forward is to maintain and improve the services that we offer, but to work in better partnership with other States departments, for example in the mental health space, we need to work more collaboratively with others to deal with this very important issue.’
