CRIME in Waltham Abbey has more than doubled this year according to the latest figures.

From February to April this year there were 304 recorded crimes compared to 147 in the same period last year, and there were 58 incidents of violent crime in March and April alone.

Damage to vehicles has also seen a large increase with 64 incidents recorded already this year.

Mayor of Waltham Abbey Ricki Gadsby said much of the crime was caused by people coming into the area.

She said: “We’re in a particularly bad location right off the M25 and M11. It’s an area people can get away from quickly.

“We’ve been trying to get more police in the evenings and we do have a lot of teenagers in the area with nothing to do. We discuss these things with the police and we hope to get success rates up.”

Stephen Boost’s 82-year-old father Laurie was a victim of violent crime earlier this year when he was attacked in his family’s bookies by a robber.

Stephen, 34, of Honey Lane., Waltham Abbey, said: “There’s loads of kids here and they’ve all got nothing to do. They’re just hanging about and people feel unsettled. Ninefields is becoming a bit of a khazi. I’ve had threats myself.

“I think we need a higher police presence. I’ve seen with my own eyes girls asking older lads to buy cigarettes right in front of PCSOs.”

Neighbourhood Inspector for Waltham Abbey Craig Carrington said the new rise in crime was “a blip” and urged residents in the town not to worry.

He said: “We are aware that crime has gone up and we have operations to reduce it to get it back to where it was.

“We did have a spike of offenders causing problems and serious offences at the beginning of the year but we have worked hard to arrest them. We have had no serious assaults in Waltham Abbey for a period of time.

“Within vehicle crime we are having a lot of cars in car parks targeted. People who park to use the Lea Valley or the pool have had their cars attacked.”

Mr Carrington said much of the increased crime was down to repeat offenders adding: “The methods being used are similar and I would urge people who have a car to lock them and keep valuables out of the way.”