MURDERS, sex attacks, gun crime and race hate offences have all been slashed in numbers by Barking and Dagenham police. The Met released London wide figures last week for 2007 and 2008 showing that overall crime has been reduced across the city. In this b

MURDERS, sex attacks, gun crime and race hate offences have all been slashed in numbers by Barking and Dagenham police.

The Met released London wide figures last week for 2007 and 2008 showing that overall crime has been reduced across the city.

In this borough officers have had huge successes in reducing violent crimes.

There was only one murder in 2008 compared to five in 2007 and there were 70 less sexual crimes.

Gun enabled crime and racially aggravated offences have fallen too.

And there was much less car theft and vehicle vandalism, falling from 3,013 offences in 2007 to 2,696 in 2008.

In Barking and Dagenham the total number of crimes has fallen over the last year - from 19,721 to 19,701.

This is compared to neighbouring boroughs such as Redbridge which saw an increase in crime from 22,522 in 2007 to 24,217 in 2008.

And in Havering crimes numbers also rose from 17,374 to 18,120 but offences in Newham fell from 35,273 to 34,020.

However robberies and burglaries in homes and businesses have increased and officers have issued repeated warnings to families over the last few months to keep their houses secure.

In 2007 the total number of burglaries in the borough was 1,628 but last year there were 1,823.

In Redbridge the increase was even more alarming - from 2,866 to 3,315.

Neighbouring boroughs of Newham and Havering have also seen increases in the number of burglaries.

Robberies in Barking and Dagenham have seen a slight rise, but not in the same numbers as burglaries.

During 2007 there were 647 violent thefts in homes and businesses, last year there were 671.

The number seems high in comparison to Havering which had half that many last year, 325 robberies were committed.

But the number in this borough pales in comparison to Redbridge and Newham which had 995 and 1,789 last year respectively.

Borough Commander Dave Reed said: "The crime figures reflect the steadfast efforts made by my officers to achieve a significant decrease in crime.

"Their tireless efforts are reflected in the reductions in violence, gun crime and sexual assaults.

"Although burglary does show a marked increase, steps are being taken through Operation Spotlight and Operation Secure to remove burglars from our streets and to educate householders on home security and property marking.

"My agenda for the coming year is straightforward. We will reduce crime further still and make Barking and Dagenham an ever safer place to live, work and raise families.