VIOLENT crime in Wellington is on the up because of feuding neighbours, the town’s police sergeant has said.

In his monthly report to Wellington Town Council, Sgt Jon O’Connor said violent crime was up and neighbourly disputes counted for “the bulk” of police reports.

He said: “(There has been) an overall reduction in crime on the same period last year but again a rise in ‘violence against the person’ offences.

“As I outlined in last month’s meeting this offence group spans a number of different crime types including certain types of threatening behaviour not covered by the Public Order Act. 

“We are working very closely with our partner agencies in housing (local authority and social landlords) as neighbour disputes often form the bulk of this demand type. What begins as a seemingly trivial matter can easily escalate into threats and assaults between neighbours.

“I want to see earlier interventions with these disputes addressing the root cause so the police aren’t continually managing the symptoms. Working together, increased use of antisocial behaviour legislation combined with tenancy enforcement action should help to reduce the number of neighbour-related incidents as we approach the summer period.”

It comes after police data revealed there were 54 calls about violent crime to police in Wellington this month, compared to just 43 in May 2023.

Residents were also told advice was available over the threat of so-called ‘courier fraud’, a scam in which criminals posing as officials ask unknowing victims to hand over cash. Sgt Jon O’Connor said: “There haven’t been any victims in Wellington but there has been a previous instance in Taunton. 

“We’re always happy to provide advice and support to residents on this and other types of fraud or there is information available on the Action Fraud website.”

Sgt Jon O’Connor also set out how he and his team were engaging with the community. He said: “This month has provided several community engagement events for the team.

“These are fantastic opportunities to speak with people outside of the normal course of our duties and to show our faces to those who won’t often get to see us in their daily lives.”