MORE than 90 crimes have been reported as having happened on trains and at railway stations in Flintshire over recent years, according to figures.

Freedom of Information data obtained by the Leader reveal the number of offences and crimes taking place at such locations across the county each year since the beginning of 2017.

According to the figures, a total of 58 offences have been reported across that time - constituting 93 crimes.

British Transport Police confirmed that 'offence' under the dataset refers to the type, such as theft, assault occasioning actual bodily harm, public order.

However, there may be more than one 'crime' counted for an individual offence - for example there many have been more than one victim to the same offence, therefore the count of crimes would be based on the number of victims listed against one offence.

The year with the highest number of offences recorded was 2020, with 19 in total.

This was followed by 2017 with 13, then 2018 with 10, 2019 with nine and 2021 to date with seven.

In terms of crimes recorded, the highest year was 2020 with 30.

This was followed by 2017 with 19, 2019 with 18, 2018 with 16 and 2021 to date with 9.

The data also confirmed the most common offence types for each of the years;

2017: Theft (pedal cycle), graffiti and common assault/battery with no injury.

2018: Common assault/battery no injury, public order (causing intentional harassment, alarm or distress and cannabis possession).

2019: Public order (causing intentional harassment, alarm or distress and cannabis possession), public order (fear or provocation of violence) and cannabis possession.

2020: Criminal damage (damage building/works), public order (causing intentional harassment, alarm or distress and cannabis possession) and common assault/battery with no injury.

2021: Cannabis possession and common assault/battery with no injury.

British Transport Police Inspector Karl Anderson said: “We work tirelessly to deter criminality and anti-social behaviour on the network – thankfully the chance of becoming a victim of crime on the railway in North Wales remains extremely low.

“Passengers and rail staff should be reassured that we take positive and firm action against trouble makers. As events return and footfall increases, we will continue to provide a highly visible presence on trains and at stations to prevent any potential rise in anti-social behaviour.

"We want everyone to know that they can text us discreetly on 61016, whether something is happening to you at the time or has happened to you recently. Our control room can dispatch officers to a location if required or put you in touch with an officer to speak at a convenient time. Save 61016 in your phone, so you have the number to hand should you ever need us. Nothing is too small or trivial. Alternatively, you can call us on 0800 40 50 40. In an emergency, always dial 999.”