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Fraud triples in Moray since lockdown


By Alistair Whitfield

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Cases of fraud in Moray more than tripled following lockdown, according to figures released today by Police Scotland.

The figures, which can be seen in full here, cover the start of April to the end of September.

They show 106 cases of fraud recorded in Moray during those six months, compared to just 33 during the same period last year.

Additionally, the police managed to make arrests in 44 for fraud, compared to 10 before.

However, overall, the police crime figures show a slight fall in offending when set against the same six months from last year.

A total of 1253 crimes were recorded in Moray, compared to 1312 before.

Serious assaults fell sharply, with 13 cases recorded, of which led to 12 arrests. This compared to 25 before.

Also, there were just 86 cases of shoplifting, compared to 132 before.

Housebreaking rose slightly to 23 from 22, although the numbers of attempted housebreaking cases more than doubled to 30 from 14.

Domestic assault cases increased to 28 – of which 26 were by men and two by women – compared to 21 before.

Chief Superintendent George Macdonald is in charge of the North East Division, which covers Aberdeenshire and Aberdeen as well as Moray.

He said: "Another significant rise in cyber-related offences has been recorded as criminals continue to prey on the unique circumstances of this pandemic.

"These offences become a bigger part of frontline policing every day."

However, Chf Supt Macdonald stressed that the figures were recorded during an "extraordinary time", which increases the difficulty of making assumptions about trends in crime.

He said: "While crime levels nationally are returning to levels experienced during previous years, it could take many months before we fully understand the impact this public health crisis has had.

"Above all, I want to take this opportunity to thank the public for the support our police officers, staff and special constables continue to receive as we navigate our way through this challenging time."


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