More than three quarters of crimes reported to police in Dorset last year are unsolved.

Information obtained by the Echo through a Freedom of Information (FOI) request reveal that 32,161 out of 41,672 crimes reported across the county in the year 2015/16 remain 'unsolved', meaning no one has been charged or prosecuted, a total of 77 per cent.

Dorset's police and crime commissioner has said officers are “buckling under the pressure” and is calling for more resources.

The highest category of reported crimes in Dorset was theft at 11,389 - 2,135 were solved.

A total of 10,651 crimes of violence against a person were reported with 3,037 solved.

More than 1,600 crimes in the county remain under investigation, but 411 have been referred to another agency.

Figures obtained by the Echo under a previous FOI request showed that in 2010/2011 there was a total of 45,148 recorded crimes, 9,753 of which led to a charge, summons, caution, formal warning, youth reprimand or the offence being taken into consideration.

In Weymouth in 2015/16, 1,388 of 4,914 reported crimes led to action.

The FOI highlighted that police solved 242 out of 288 drug-related crimes in Weymouth in 2015/16.

Superintendent Caroline Naughton explained that the force had been "proactive" in tackling drug offences and ran a number of drug-related operations across the county with one single operation resulting in 35 drug-related crimes being recorded in Weymouth.

In the borough police are yet to solve 833 out of 1,057 theft crimes, 685 criminal damage reports out of 833 and 1,170 reports of violence against the person out of 1,663.

Superintendent Naughton said: "We have placed a particular focus on ensuring that Dorset Police and its partners protect and safeguard vulnerable people, such as victims of domestic abuse.

"In addition, our effective safeguarding activity and our victim-focused approach has led to higher levels of confidence for people to come forward and report despicable crimes such as domestic abuse and sexual violence, something we will continue to encourage even if it results in increasing crime figures in these areas.

"Of the 1,663 offences recorded as violence against the person, 559 related to offences of domestic abuse. Within these domestic abuse investigations there were 107 occasions where the victim declined to support a prosecution. When the evidence is available and it is believed to be in the victim’s interest, Dorset Police will still launch a victimless prosecution against offenders of domestic abuse.

"Contrary to the common understanding of the term, it is also important to note that not all violent crimes result in physical violence. There can be difficulty in proving such crimes without other evidence such as witnesses or CCTV.

"These figures will also include violence against the person reported by HM Prisons."

Superintendent Naughton said the complexity of the force's work is increasing every year.

She said: "Dorset Police is committed to investigating all reports of crime and in 2015/16 had a detection rate that was above the national average. We are continuing to improve our detection rate, which in 2016/17 was ranked in the top quarter nationally.

"While we understand the public’s interest in detection rates, it is also important to emphasise that they are not the only measure of investigative performance. Although a crime may not have resulted in a criminal justice outcome, it still will have been investigated. "There are different ways of investigating a crime, including telephone investigation conducted by a call handler, the attendance of a police officer at the scene or by a specialist member of staff, such as a crime scene investigator or a high-tech crime analyst.

"Additionally, while 23 per cent of crimes result in the criminal justice outcomes highlighted by these statistics, a huge amount of other work takes place that is not recorded as a detection. This includes safeguarding vulnerable victims, working with partners to respond to community issues or resolve anti-social behaviour, taking an educational approach to first-time lower-level offenders, or organising local restorative justice.

"It is also honest and realistic to recognise that some crimes simply aren’t solvable, as there are no viable lines of enquiry or information given is not detailed enough to pursue. Nevertheless, Dorset Police ensures crimes are recorded when allegations are made, so people can have faith in our statistics."