MOST robbers who targeted victims on the streets of Bradford city centre in the last year are unlikely ever to be brought to justice.

Statistics compiled by the West Yorkshire force reveal more than 60 per cent of investigations into city centre robberies ended with no offender identified.

That means unless fresh information becomes available there will be no more active work on those cases, resulting in little practical chance of offenders being caught.

The figures show officers succeeded in bringing criminal charges against offenders in a little more than ten per cent of cases, with at least one offender sent to prison.

The figures cover the 12 months from June 2013 to May this year and show another 25 per cent of incidents were still under investigation.

In total there were robbery 40 incidents in that period, the bulk likely to be 'mugging' type street robberies.

Now police are using new tactics, including the use of body cameras for city centre patrol staff and 'consequence cards' handed to potential victims seen making themselves vulnerable to crime.

Detective Chief Inspector Jonathan Blackwell, Bradford crime manager, said: "One robbery in Bradford city centre is one too many as far as I am concerned and our officers at the City Area Neighbourhood Team, which is based in the heart of the city centre, are committed to making sure it remains a safe and enjoyable place.

"We realise that victims can feel very vulnerable when this happens to them, so we are able to put them in touch with partner agencies such as Victims Support.

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“Thankfully the chances of being a victim of robbery in Bradford city centre are and remain low, but we would urge people to protect themselves by being aware of their surroundings and keeping valuables out of sight.

"Talking on a mobile, listening to an MP3 player, or openly carrying a laptop shows potential thieves you have something worth taking.

"Mobile phones are a popular item among thieves.

"Commercial robberies can be harder to detect as offenders are likely to make more effort to conceal their identity. Some burglaries are reclassified as robberies because force has been used or threatened. This impacts on the overall detection rate.

"Robbery is taken very seriously by the police and the courts, and those who are convicted can expect to receive a custodial sentence.

"Police in Bradford continue to work with partners to develop new ways of tackling robbery in the city centre, and in the last year, we have introduced officers who patrol with body-mounted cameras, as well as handing out consequence cards to warn victims and offenders about the consequences of being involved in a robbery."

Bradford Chamber of Trade, which represents the retail sector, described the statistics as "worrying".

Its spokesman Val Summerscales said: "They are worrying statistics.

"I do know the police have a new inspector in the city centre, doing initiatives and working with other agencies.

"The police initiatives are mainly in City Park to deter street drinking and drugs, but they require money and that is where thefts come in.

"We don't want anything that would deter people from coming into the city centre," she said.

The chamber said it had no evidence of members' businesses being affected by the threat from robbery.

Council leader Councillor David Green said: “All the figures I have seen about Bradford city centre as compared to other large town and city centres in the country would indicate that criminal incidents are less in Bradford. Certainly that was the last set of figures I got.

“But, one has got to be too many. It is about victims and we need to speak to the police to identify what the issues are in terms of detection and conviction rates to make sure those who have been unfortunate victims of these attacks and robberies receive the justice that they deserve.”

Bradford Council leader, Councillor David Green, said: “All the figures I have seen about Bradford city centre as compared to other large town and city centres in the country would indicate that criminal incidents are fewer in Bradford. Certainly that was the last set of figures I got.

“But, one has got to be too many. It is about victims and we need to speak to the police to identify what the issues are in terms of detection and conviction rates to make sure those who have been unfortunate victims of these attacks and robberies receive the justice that they deserve.”