Only six per cent of street robberies and in one ten knifepoint muggings caught on CCTV get solved by police, figures show – The Sun

BARELY one in 20 street robberies caught on CCTV are solved by police, figures show.

A mere six per cent of the annual 6,256 filmed muggings in London end up being detected.

The terrible clear-up rate rises only marginally in robberies on business premises from which CCTV evidence was obtained.

Just eight per cent of the 1,745 hold-ups on businesses were solved.

Meanwhile, a paltry one in ten knifepoint robberies featuring CCTV evidence were successfully investigated.

Statistics obtained from the Metropolitan Police under the Freedom of Information Act showed just 148 filmed muggings carried out with blades were detected.

The figures for the 12 months up to May 31 show that 40 out of 385 heists on business premises carried out with knives ended up with the culprit being apprehended.

Even then it did not mean robberies were successfully prosecuted as the figures are based on arrests not convictions.

Ex-Detective Chief Inspector Mick Neville, who founded the Met’s Central Images Unit, said: “Britain has the most CCTV cameras in the world and these provide vital evidence in terrorism and murder inquiries.

“But when it comes to robbery and other crimes police are failing to use footage and violent criminals are escaping justice.

“Even when robbers threaten victims with knives and it is recorded on camera the police are solving less than 10 per cent of these crimes.

"Opportunities to catch robbers and link them to multiple offences are being lost.”


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