Dozens of dangerous offenders north Wales and Dyfed-Powys were returned to custody after they broke their probation agreements, new figures show.
police forces, probation services and other government agencies supervise and keep track of sex offenders, violent criminals and other dangerous individuals in communities across Wales and
England through multi-agency public protection arrangements. Data from the Ministry of Justice shows 1,262 people convicted of a serious offence were being managed under MAPPAs in the North Wales Police area at the end of March this year – up from 1,244 the year before. In the Dyfed-Powys Police area of Ceredigion, Carmarthenshire, Pembrokeshire and Powys, 719 people convicted of a serious offence were being managed under MAPPAs – up from 717 the year before. Policing asylum seeker
protests cost Dyfed-Powys Police £300k Driver in hospital following collision on A484 *UPDATE* Allan has been found Crash closes part of A470 However, probation services across the country returned more criminals to custody after they breached their licence than in any year since 2009-10. Some 1,037 offenders broke their probation agreement and were returned to custody, a 19 per cent rise on the year before and the fifth successive annual increase. Of these, 51 were in north Wales – up from 31 in 2021-22, and the highest since comparable local records began in 2010-11. And 19 were in Dyfed-Powys - up from 17, the joint-highest since 2010-11. Michaela-Clare Addison, national sexual violence lead at charity Victim Support, said: "A crucial reason for having these licence conditions is to protect victims and the public – so it is seriously concerning to see them increasing year on year, leading to the highest number of breaches in over a decade. "These figures must lead to action. We need to see more focus on prevention and management of offenders, as well as services for victims, to support those potentially being put at risk." Meanwhile, as of March, there was a record 68,357 people on the sex offender's register across Wales and England, including 1,023 in north Wales and 604 in Dyfed-Powys. The number of sex offenders who have breached their notification requirements, which includes providing the relevant information for the sex offender register, rose by 25 per cent% from 1,905 in 2021-22 to 2,382 last year. Of these, 51 were in north Wales and 25 in Dyfed-Powys. A Probation Service Spokesperson said: "We will always put public protection first and when offenders breach their licence conditions they face being returned to custody."