CRIMINALS are under increasing pressure across North Yorkshire as a county-wide police crackdown continues to yield spectacular results.

Crime rates have fallen, detection rates have increased and more offenders are being brought to justice as the Operation Delivery bites deep.

However, the number of violent crimes reported has bucked the trend and gone up by more than half compared to last year, despite the overall success of the operation.

North Yorkshire Police launched the operation was launched in September last year and the latest crime figures for the county show it has had positive effect.

Overall reported crime has fallen by 2.1pc compared to the same period last year and detection rates have increased from 20pc to 32pc, the second best results in the country.

Domestic burglaries have fallen 38pc, other burglaries have dropped 25pc, vehicle crime is down by 39pc, and robberies are down 19pc.

Violent crime has increased by a startling 57pc, but detection rates have also increased, up from 56 to 68pc.

The total number of people arrested has increased by 30pc and the number of offences cleared up has increased 8.3pc to 13,351 - well ahead of the target of five per cent set by the Home Office.

Supt Colin Taylor, head of the county's administration of justice department, is delighted with the results.

He said: "The impact of Operation Delivery has been tremendous with arrests and detection rates increasing and recorded crime levels falling, producing performance figures rarely matched anywhere else in the country."

The force hopes that further improvements will follow from various projects including the introduction of a new information technology system and a new victim and witness care scheme.

Supt Taylor said: "Our aim is to improve efficiency and increase productivity within the criminal justice system.

"Operation Delivery is producing fantastic results and it is imperative that other agencies respond to a similar standard. These figures indicate that we are rising to the challenge."