As the issue of the grooming gang menace in the United Kingdom (UK) is back in the headlines, British media reported early Monday (Jan 13) that almost every violent or sexual offence went unsolved in several crime hotspots in England and Wales in 2024.

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Official figures stated that nearly 1.9 million violent or sexual crimes in England and Wales had been closed without a suspect being caught or charged in the year to June 2024. 

According to an analysis by The Guardian, fewer than one in 10 cases were resolved in 611 neighbourhoods with the highest level of these offences.

Only 11% of cases in England and Wales were closed

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The analysis showed that only 11 per cent of the violent and sexual offence cases in England and Wales were closed after a suspect was caught or charged in the year to June 2024.

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This percentage is about half the proportion seven years earlier.

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There were stark differences in the proportion of violent and sexual crimes going unsolved across the UK, with big urban forces faring far worse than those parts of England and Wales with fewer offences.

'Completely unacceptable...'

British Minister Jess Phillips said that it was completely unacceptable that fewer and fewer violent and sexual crimes were being solved, with more victims being let down time and time again.

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Phillips, who takes care of the ministry for safeguarding and violence against women and girls, said, “The severity of these numbers prove why violence against women and girls is a national emergency and that is why we have set out our unprecedented mission to halve it in a decade.”

Chief Constable Gavin Stephens, the chair of the National Police Chiefs' Council (NPCC), said that victims faced a disparity of policy across England and backed calls for a major shake-up of how the country's 43 forces operated.

(With inputs from agencies)