Digital Backlog Is Down To Lack Of Detectives

SOUTH Yorkshire Police has a backlog of 370 unchecked devices that are awaiting examination by investigators, according to a Press Association study.

The investigation found that 12,122 devices were waiting to be examined across the 43 forces in England and Wales. This delay could put arrests in jeopardy and mean that victims have to wait longer for justice to be done.

South Yorkshire Police Federation Chairman Steve Kent said the delay in his force could be put down to a shortage in detectives.

He said: “Our force was one of the hardest hit by austerity. We went from 3,400 officers down to 2,500. The force has introduced a rotation system that hasn’t gone down well, and a £2,000 bonus for hard-to-fill posts, such as in the Protecting Vulnerable People (PVP) area.

“There are currently 76 sexual assault cases on the queue, so this is a vital area. The rub comes for colleagues not in PVP who wonder why they are not a priority for the bonus.

“So, the force does seem to be trying to recruit more detectives, but of course the situation will take a long time to turn around.”

The shortage extends to the whole country, and the Police Federation of England and Wales (PFEW) is calling on the government to provide long-term funding for detectives.

PFEW National Chair John Apter said that officers were “overwhelmed” by the amount of digital evidence they were faced with, and that mounting workloads didn’t help when forces were already struggling to attract new detectives.

He said: “Victims need to have the confidence to report offences and to have the reassurance that it will be investigated in a timely manner. Some of the delays we see up and down the country are unacceptable, but are not the fault of our hardworking detectives.

“Today, many more investigations involve the need to interrogate electronic devices, whether mobile phones, laptops or tablets. Some of these can be incredibly complex and painstaking and will understandably take time to do what’s required.

“Some will say these should be priorities, I agree, but so is domestic violence, child exploitation, knife crime, cybercrime and all the others. The pressure on policing continues, which is why a long-term funding formula is needed to give Chief Constables and Police and Crime Commissioners the ability to plan.”

PFEW’s Detectives in Crisis campaign calls on senior officers and PCCs to look at this problem within their force and address the demand and capacity imbalance.

See the campaign here: https://www.polfed.org/campaigns/detectives-in-crisis/