A 'concerning' rise in sex crimes figures for Bathgate which saw reports jump by 285% over the last year has been attributed to 'really good proactive police work'.
Sex crime cases rose from seven in the first quarter of 2020 to 27 in the same three months this year.
The same period saw assaults rise by 166%, with eight serious assault cases recorded this year, compared to three for the same time last year.
Sergeant Keith Jack tabled the figures for April to June at this month’s local area committee.
Councillor Charles Kennedy questioned the "huge increases".
Sgt Jack told the meeting that the percentages and figures came ”with a health warning”.
He added: “The percentages are what they are. There’s always a context behind these things.
“In terms of the sexual crimes, which would be the figure we’d all be drawn to, that actually has been as a result of really good proactive police work in terms of looking at historical cases.”
He said that, in some cases, it was as a result of “revisiting complainers, who then will disclose further offences, or offences that have not already been reported. "
National campaigns around offences such as sextortion online had also pushed up the figures.
Sgt Jack stressed: “What I can reassure you on, and what I’d want reassurance around about, is that we don’t have someone running around Bathgate committing sexual crimes on people on the street - stranger-type attacks.”
Where such an incident happened there would be a ”massive police response", the sergeant added.
Councillor Kennedy said it was good to “get some context.”
“It makes a difference to know that, because just looking at the raw figures there’s some concern. It’s good to have background to these raw figures, that it’s not just as bad as it appears, so that’s appreciated.”
