1million burglaries and thefts dropped by bungling cops last year without them finding suspect

MORE than a million burglaries and thefts were dropped by cops in the last year, damning figures show.

Forces in England and Wales stopped investigating 1,145,254 cases after failing to find a suspect.

The Home Office data also revealed that the proportion of all crimes that resulted in an arrest and charge had fallen to a low of just 5.4 per cent — down from more than 15 per cent seven years ago.

Former Met DCI Mick Neville, 55, said: “The police need to be ashamed.”

Police did not even find a suspect for the crimes — which cost on average £1,400 for each break-in.

They were just part of a total of two million offences shelved by detectives, which included 300,00 violent crimes.

And the overall charge rate — the proportion of all crimes that result in a suspect being arrested and charged — fell from more than 15 per cent seven years ago to just 5.4 per cent.

Home Office figures for England and Wales from June 2021 to June 2022 revealed 1,145,254 burglaries and thefts were set aside because police could not find anyone to point the finger at.

Freedom of Information requests have also revealed 899 Christmas Day Day burglaries went unsolved over the past three years.

And in the last three Decembers, there have been 65,542 burglaries, with 54,364 of these cases closed with no suspects.

The news comes after local cops warned about the risk of burglars taking advantage of the festive period while many people are off visiting friends and family.

Police chiefs have recently promised every burglary would see a visit from a copper in a bid to restore confidence in the system.

A recent report from His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary found cops were unable to effectively probe burglaries and theft due to a shortage of experienced staff and detectives.

HM Chief Inspector of Constabulary Andy Cooke said at the time the “current low charge rates for these crimes are unacceptable” and ordered police to buck up to build back confidence.

Tory MP and former minister Brendan Clarke Smith said of the latest figures: “I welcome the pledge from the National Police Chiefs’ Council on attending every home burglary.

"The public wants to see these criminals caught, convicted and locked up.

'Ashamed'

Former cop Mick Neville, 55, worked for the Met Police — now led by Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley — for 28 years.

He said: “They need to be ashamed.

Police are nothing more than a crime number allocation service now.

“With the amount of people that have Ring doorbells and CCTV, the opportunities to solve burglaries has gone up.

“Police officers are just obsessed with PC nonsense now instead.

"The more ordinary you are, the less likely you are to get a good service from the police if your house is burgled.”

Labour analysed the figures, which Shadow Home Secretary, Yvette Cooper described as “disgraceful”.

She said: “Theft and burglary are awful crimes and should be properly investigated, not just left for the victims to make an insurance claim.

"The Home Secretary has no plan to turn this around and is instead obsessed with gimmicks rather than a serious plan to catch more criminals.”

Liberal Democrat Home Affairs spokesman Alistair Carmichael said:

Alistair Carmichael said: “To see so many burglaries going unsolved, especially during the festive period, is a damning indictment of this government's record on crime.”

The Home Office replied: “As the Home Secretary has made clear, we welcome the commitment for police attendance at home burglaries.

“We continue to support the police, including through record investment and the recruitment of 20,000 additional officers by March 2023.”