Assaults on officers ‘alarmingly’ high as police report ‘busy time’ 

Police have reported an “alarmingly” high number of assaults on officers during a “busy time” for the force in Shetland.

Sergeant Alan Patrick provided an update on recent crimes to Lerwick Community Council last night.

In the latest period, he said there had been one serious assault and one common assault in the Esplanade for which a suspect had been identified.

“Alarmingly, there has been three assaults against officer on duty, which always raises our ire,” he said.

Sgt Patrick also said there had been two incidents of shoplifting, which he said was “quite unusual for us”.

“But then again, Lerwick being Lerwick, we have a fair idea of who did it,” he said.

The SIC’s depute convener Gary Robinson asked the officer whether he thought the situation had worsened recently.

Mr Robinson referred to a “sensationalist headline” in The Shetland Times, when the newspaper reported on the concerns of retailers who had experienced an increase in shoplifting.

Sgt Patrick said it was “hard to say” but his own view was that “we are quite busy”.

The officer said much of this was due to staffing issues.

Whereas in his old patch in Lanarkshire, Sgt Patrick said he would have “almost an army” of officers on duty, he said the situation was different in Shetland.

“It therefore takes much less for us to be busy,” he said.

Sgt Patrick said he was often woken up at night with a call asking him to come back on duty, which never happened in his old job.

While it may seem busier, Sgt Patrick said that was not reflected in the crime statistics.

Asked about a recent poll in The Shetland Times, in which 75 per cent of respondents said crime had increased in Lerwick, Sgt Patrick agreed people’s concerns were “valid”.

However, he suggested people’s perceptions of crime were somewhat influenced by the reporting of it.

“Lerwick is a town of a certain size and everybody knows everything that happened to somebody.

“You hear about things on the grapevine.

“If you hear about there being more crime from somebody then there is more crime.”

Sgt Patrick said he was pleased people were concerned by crime as it meant there was greater awareness.

“I wouldn’t say there is a massive spike in crime in the area, however I take on board what everyone says,” he added.

“Rest assured we are doing everything we can to keep the numbers up to get on the square at the weekend, and getting to the pubs because a lot of the time that’s where it starts.”

Sgt Patrick praised the town’s publicans for being quick to kick out troublemakers from their establishments.

Lerwick South councillor John Fraser asked whether the “quite alarming” crime figures were down to a high level of reporting from the public,

In reality, Mr Fraser said that Lerwick was still a “safe, harmonious and serene place to stay”.

Sgt Patrick said there was much greater public co-operation in Shetland, particularly through social media appeals.

Asked whether he felt Lerwick was still a safe place, he said he remained happy for his 13-year-old daughter to be out and about, which was not the case when he lived in the east end of Glasgow.

“That’s one of the reasons I came here, I thought my daughter could grow up better here,” he said.

“She gets much more freedom here than I would afford her in the city.”