The area of England where knife crime has gone up by 52%
Knife crime is on the rise across England and Wales - with one area experiencing a staggering increase of more than 50% in the last year.
According to a new crime report from the Office for National Statistics (ONS), police-recorded offences involving a knife or sharp instrument rose to 44,771 - up from 41,858 cases in the previous year.
The document revealed that Warwickshire saw the highest increase in overall knife-related crime, with a rise of 52%.
It follows the death of Nasir Patrice, who was stabbed to death on Tachbrook Road in Leamington Spa, Warwickshire earlier in January.
In October last year, Cain Jackson, 24, was found dead in the street from stab injuries in Rugby.
Knife crime across England and Wales hit a record high in the year to September 2019 - up by 7% on the 12 months previous.
The change in the number of offences involving knives or sharp instruments in the latest year varied by police force.
The area that recorded the highest number of police-reported incidents was the West Midlands.
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London saw little change with a 2% increase, compared with a 7% rise in the previous year.
Overall knife incidents also rose by 44% in Suffolk and 48% in West Mercia.
Meanwhile, West Yorkshire saw a decrease of 8% in the number of overall knife related crimes reported to police.
Last week, data released by the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) showed the number of knife crimes resulting in a conviction or caution was the highest in a decade.
There were 22,286 knife and offensive weapon offences formally dealt with by the criminal justice system in England and Wales in the year ending September 2019, according to the figures.
Helen Ross from the Office for National Statistics Centre for Crime and Justice said of the : “In the last year there has been no change in overall levels of crime, however, this hides variations in different types of crime.
“For example, there have been continued rises in fraud, vehicle offences and robbery, and decreases in burglary and homicide.
“Although the number of offences involving a knife has continued to increase, there is a mixed picture across police forces and overall levels of violence remain steady. We have also seen the number of homicides where a knife or sharp instrument was used decrease by a fifth, driven by falls in London.”