DORSET Police have been accused of failing to properly investigate almost half of all crimes reported to them.

Figures released under the Freedom of Information Act show 23,328 calls out of the 50,648 made to the force in the last year were not taken beyond an initial investigation.

It was also claimed that the force ‘screened out’ 12,611 calls from the public for no follow-up at all.

The figures show Dorset Police failed to properly investigate 46 per cent of calls – second only to the Metropolitan force – out of the 18 British forces that provided statistics.

At the opposite end of the spectrum, Essex police were reported to have screened out only three per cent of their calls while the Leicestershire and Grampian forces screened out only nine per cent of calls.

West Dorset MP Oliver Letwin said he was concerned to learn that Dorset had been placed second in the list.

He said: “This is clearly a great concern.

“We need to have an explanation from the Chief Constable of Dorset on this issue and I have already written to him to ask for one.

“It has been news to me as it has to most people and of course it is of great concern to me.

“Constituents have expressed concerns over specific incidents and police investigations in the past but not in this way or on this level.”

South Dorset MP Jim Knight said: “The Home Secretary said just a couple of days ago that that the principle of every crime victim being seen and spoken to by an officer is really important and screening out some calls as not worthy of investigation flies in the face of that principle.

“Dorset Police do really well on some things like naming and shaming criminals.

“As the local MP I have a regular dialogue with the police and this is an issue I will be seeking very strong reassurances over.”

The Liberal Democrat parliamentary candidate for West Dorset, Sue Farrant, said she has written to the police to express her concern over the figures. She said: “I’ve read about this with great concern and have written to the chief constable.

“My feeling is this may be due to a lack of funding for police manpower and possibly Government targets that don’t match communities’ expectation of their police force.”

Defending their position, a Dorset Police spokesman said the claim that 46 per cent of calls were not followed up properly was ‘totally inaccurate.’ Detective Supt Colin Stranger said all crimes reported to Dorset Police are investigated no matter how or when they are reported to officers.

He said: “Dorset Police employ specially-trained telephone investigators, who during 2008/9 conducted 12,611 (24.9 per cent) telephone investigations following calls from the public, where they determined that there were no further productive lines of enquiry and the offences committed were of a minor nature.

“As a result, these investigations were finalised without the requirement for police attendance, however these crimes may be subject to a follow up visit by a Safer Neighbourhood Team.

“This is what is referred to as ‘screened crime’.”

New figures 'not a surprise'

Many crime victims in Dorset have said they are ‘not surprised’ by the figures after complaining about a lack of action from officers.

Robert Hallett, 51, of Park Court, Littlemoor, has accused Weymouth police on several occasions of failing to follow up adequately on anti-social and youth crime in his area.

He said: “I think it’s outrageous but, unfortunately, not a surprise.

“I think when officers don’t respond it sends a message to Joe Public saying: ‘We’re not interested in this sort of crime’ and the public then thinks: ‘I can get away with this.’ “I would say the situation is getting worse rather than better.”

Mr Hallett suggested that Dorset Police sometimes ‘pick up on easy targets’ when it comes to policing.

He said: “Speed cameras and traffic offences are easy to deal with to keep their figures up.

“We need to be asking ourselves if we shouldn’t be focusing on more important issues like anti-social behaviour.

“These sorts of crimes are seen as ‘low-level’ by many but I would say that people committing these low-level crimes often go on to higher end crimes if they get away with it too often.”

Police deny prioritising targets

Suggestions that Dorset Police failed to fully investigate certain types of crime in order to meet detection targets have been denied.

Det Supt Colin Stanger said: “Decisions made regarding investigations are not crime-type specific and nor are they based on targets.

“Dorset Police always try to prioritise those crimes affecting our communities the most.

“These priorities are set in consultation with our local communities and partner agencies via our Safer Neighbourhood Teams.”

He added: “Police officers investigated a further 23,312 (21.2 per cent) reported crimes, where, following initial investigation and review by a supervisor, it has been decided all productive lines of enquiry have been completed. These crimes are referred to as ‘supervisor screened crimes’.

“Therefore the inference that Dorset Police have not investigated 46 per cent of crime is totally inaccurate. In fact all crimes are investigated to a minimum standard which allows the effective use of resources to concentrate on those crimes which have the potential to be detected or are of a more serious nature.”