Colchester police cracked the highest proportion of crimes of any part of Essex last year.

The division's crime manager, Det Chief Insp Mick Jones, said the division's officers detected 35 per cent of the offences recorded in 2003.

He said: "Areas where we are doing particularly well are auto crime detection rates.

"Areas we'd like to see better are burglaries of people's houses, which had a detection rate of just under 20 per cent, and violent crime.

"The detection rate for violent crime is 70 per cent, which is very high, but unfortunately we have got a very high target and we are just under it.

"If you were to compare us with areas outside Essex, we are exceptional."

Published Wednesday January 14, 2004

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