The least common crimes were robbery, shoplifting and theft from a person. Two offences were recorded for each crime type.

The most prevalent crime was violence and sexual offences, of which there were 291 recorded. This is followed by 138 antisocial behaviour crimes. Thank you to NetGalley and Saga Egmont Audio for the free audio book in exchange for an honest review. This was narrated by Colin Mace who did a fantastic job of immersing me into the story and not wanting to leave!

Around half of the crimes reported in the ward were violence and sexual offences (518) and antisocial behaviour offences (273).

The crime rate in Isle of Wight is 7,997 incidents per 100,000 population, according to figures published by the ONS for the year ending July 2022. In the year ending July 2022, there were 11,267 incidents of crime, a 1,690 increase in incidents when compared to the previous year. Compare crime rate by area. Nettles, Valerie (5 September 2019). The Boy Who Disappeared. Kings Road Publishing. ISBN 978-1-78946-093-3. On the other side, there were only eight bike thefts reported, 10 theft from a person offences, and 14 robberies. 2. Ryde - 2,666Over 140 possession of a weapon and criminal damage and arson crimes were further recorded by police in 2020. This policing ward covers a large area of the island and is the second-safest place in the isle of Wight.

Nettles’ family became aware their son may have been captured on CCTV whilst on the High Street in Cowes, so they sought out the owners of the cameras, which belonged to a local organisation. After the authorities were notified, Nettles was pinpointed on the footage. But after it was viewed by Nettles’ mother, she informed police the person in the film they believed to be her son, was in fact not him. She did however locate her son on the film, which caught Nettles’ last movements, in which he could be seen alone, eating his chips, walking along the empty street just after midnight. This was the last moment on film that Nettles’ mother ever saw her son alive. After a period of time, this footage was lost by police. A complaint was made by Nettles’ mother to the Independent Police Complaints Commission in 2005 regarding this loss and the way her son’s case had been dealt with. She received a response in which she was advised that the incident concerning the officer responsible for the lost tapes had previously been acted upon. [4] Connor, Laura (9 August 2016). "Detectives probing missing 16-year-old Damien Nettles mystery break silence after watching BBC documentary". Mirror . Retrieved 16 February 2022. Each day we'll be sending you a selection of our top stories from across our county, as well as breaking news so you can be the first to know. It has been claimed that Nettles’ mother has conveyed how disheartened she’d found herself, because of the police’s management of the case. Evidence ended up being mislaid, along with records failing to be kept, resulting in any possible progression of the case being hindered. The call log made to police on the night of Nettles’ disappearance no longer exists, and the records detailing which officers were on duty that night were lost. However, the case remains open. [4] Other criticisms towards the handling of the investigation include requests made to commence searches both on land and from the air, being rejected, and the error made by police who initially listed Nettles as a missing adult rather than a missing child. [8] Members of the public campaigned by protesting and participating in a march. Their aim was to convince police to dig at Parkhurst Forest and Gurnard, as claims were made that Nettles’ remains may be buried there. However, police declined this request, as they believed the claims made to them came from untrustworthy sources. [12] A witness remembers that Nettles was attempting to open the car doors of a blue Ford Fiesta. This person recalls it being somewhere around 23:15 and claims it took place in the Harbour Lights pub car park. After this, another witness placed Nettles at a bus stop near one of The Co-operative Group supermarkets. He entered a bus here, but exited shortly after talking to the driver. It was alleged that he had tried to take the driver's picture with the camera he had on him. He was said to have thanked the driver at the time of exiting the bus. [4] A third witness was waiting in their car for their child to be dropped off by a different bus. Whilst waiting, they claim a person matching Nettles description was eating chips, nestled together with his arms and legs close to his body. The witness then claims the figure approached him, saying “They are watching us”, before clearing rain off the car window and walking off towards the High Street. [5] Investigation [ edit ]The court heard there was an 89-second window in which this other man could have murdered Mr Cooper. A full breakdown of the crime statistics for each policing ward can be found below. 1. Newport - 3,167 Toogood, Darren (2 November 2021). "25 YEARS ON: MYSTERY REMAINS AROUND THE DISAPPEARANCE OF DAMIEN NETTLES". Island Echo . Retrieved 23 February 2022. The most prevalent crime was violence and sexual offences, of which there were 277, plus 170 antisocial behaviour crimes. A quarter of all crime on the Isle of Wight was recorded in Newport, making it the worst place for crime on the island.