City centre named as a 'weapons hotspot'

MORE OFFENCES LAST YEAR THAN IN MUCH OF BRITAIN

- By RICHARD AULT

MORE weapons offences were recorded in Plymouth’s city centre last year than nearly anywhere else in the country - as a new map reveals the neighbourhoods where people are most likely to be armed and dangerous.

Last year, police recorded almost 58,000 weapons offences in England and Wales, including possession of a knife, firearm, or other weapons. That was around 850 fewer crimes than in 2023, the first time the overall number of weapons offences has fallen since the pandemic.

However, there were a record 28,000 crimes of possessing a knife or any article with a blade or point, and a record 22,000 crimes of possessing any weapon other than a knife or gun (22,000).

The fall in overall weapons offences was driven by an 8% fall in the number of offences involving a firearm.