{"id":29468,"date":"2025-06-06T07:55:25","date_gmt":"2025-06-06T11:55:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/worldjusticenews.com\/news\/?p=29468"},"modified":"2025-06-06T07:55:25","modified_gmt":"2025-06-06T11:55:25","slug":"thousands-of-uk-criminal-cases-collapsing-due-to-missing-or-lost-police-evidence","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/worldjusticenews.com\/news\/2025\/06\/06\/thousands-of-uk-criminal-cases-collapsing-due-to-missing-or-lost-police-evidence\/","title":{"rendered":"Thousands of UK criminal cases collapsing due to missing or lost police evidence"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"ssrcss-suhx0k-RichTextComponentWrapper ep2nwvo0\" data-component=\"text-block\">\n<div class=\"ssrcss-1o5p6v2-RichTextContainer e5tfeyi1\">\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\"><b class=\"ssrcss-1xjjfut-BoldText e5tfeyi3\">Thousands of criminal cases &#8211; including some of the most serious violent and sexual offences &#8211; are collapsing every year because of lost, damaged or missing evidence, the BBC has found.<\/b><\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">More than 30,000 prosecutions in England and Wales collapsed between October 2020 and September 2024, data from the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) reveals.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">They include 70 homicides and more than 550 sexual offences.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">Police chiefs say not all the cases relate to lost evidence and the figures include situations where officers may not be able to find an expert witness or get a medical statement.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"ssrcss-suhx0k-RichTextComponentWrapper ep2nwvo0\" data-component=\"text-block\">\n<div class=\"ssrcss-1o5p6v2-RichTextContainer e5tfeyi1\">\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">However, it follows a series of damning reports about how police forces are storing evidence.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">A Home Office spokesperson said: &#8220;We always expect forces to adhere to the National Police Chiefs&#8217; Council&#8217;s (NPCC) guidance on storage and retention of evidence.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">A leading criminologist says the increase was largely &#8220;a resourcing issue&#8221; brought about by cuts to police forces throughout the 2010s.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">And ex-police officers told the BBC it was unsurprising and the amount of evidence they deal with is &#8220;overwhelming&#8221;.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">When police forces build cases around defendants they hand a file to the CPS.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"ssrcss-suhx0k-RichTextComponentWrapper ep2nwvo0\" data-component=\"text-block\">\n<div class=\"ssrcss-1o5p6v2-RichTextContainer e5tfeyi1\">\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">But when the CPS cannot proceed to trial because police do not have the necessary evidence needed to secure a conviction &#8211; they record it in their data as an &#8220;E72&#8221;.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">The BBC, alongside the University of Leicester, managed to obtain Freedom of Information (FOI) requests showing the number of E72s recorded between 2020 and 2024 at police forces in England and Wales.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">They can include:<\/p>\n<div class=\"ssrcss-h5qd1q-ListContainer e5tfeyi0\">\n<ul role=\"list\">\n<li>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">Physical evidence &#8211; including forensic evidence &#8211; being lost, damaged or contaminated during storage<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"ssrcss-h5qd1q-ListContainer e5tfeyi0\">\n<ul role=\"list\">\n<li>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">Digital evidence, such as victim interview footage or body camera footage, being lost<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"ssrcss-h5qd1q-ListContainer e5tfeyi0\">\n<ul role=\"list\">\n<li>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">Witness statements or pathology reports not being made available by police<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"ssrcss-h5qd1q-ListContainer e5tfeyi0\">\n<ul role=\"list\">\n<li>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">Key evidence not gathered from the crime scene<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">The figures obtained by the BBC do not break down why cases have collapsed.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">However, the data does suggest the number of cases recorded as an E72 are increasing, with a higher proportion of prosecutions failing to result in a conviction because of lost or missing evidence each year.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">In 2020, a total of 7,484 prosecutions collapsed because of lost, missing or damaged evidence. In 2024, that had risen by 9%, to 8,180.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"ssrcss-1o1fzgd-ComponentWrapper-HeadlineComponentWrapper egtrm1f0\" data-component=\"subheadline-block\">\n<h2 id=\"It-can-really-affect-someones-mental-state\" class=\"ssrcss-pbttu9-Heading e10rt3ze0\" tabindex=\"-1\"><span role=\"text\">&#8216;It can really affect someone&#8217;s mental state&#8217;<\/span><\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"ssrcss-10wcwg8-ComponentWrapper-FullWidthWrapper ep2nwvo1\" data-component=\"image-block\">\n<figure class=\"ssrcss-12gl1u2-StyledFigure e34k3c22\">\n<div class=\"ssrcss-ab5fd8-StyledFigureContainer e34k3c21\"><span class=\"ssrcss-9zamdz-Placeholder etlorgc0\"><picture><source srcset=\"https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/standard\/240\/cpsprodpb\/f530\/live\/b59f3c50-423f-11f0-88ff-7175a95adafe.jpg.webp 240w, https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/standard\/320\/cpsprodpb\/f530\/live\/b59f3c50-423f-11f0-88ff-7175a95adafe.jpg.webp 320w, https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/standard\/480\/cpsprodpb\/f530\/live\/b59f3c50-423f-11f0-88ff-7175a95adafe.jpg.webp 480w, https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/standard\/624\/cpsprodpb\/f530\/live\/b59f3c50-423f-11f0-88ff-7175a95adafe.jpg.webp 624w, https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/standard\/800\/cpsprodpb\/f530\/live\/b59f3c50-423f-11f0-88ff-7175a95adafe.jpg.webp 800w, https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/standard\/976\/cpsprodpb\/f530\/live\/b59f3c50-423f-11f0-88ff-7175a95adafe.jpg.webp 976w\" type=\"image\/webp\" \/><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"ssrcss-11yxrdo-Image edrdn950\" src=\"https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/standard\/3840\/cpsprodpb\/f530\/live\/b59f3c50-423f-11f0-88ff-7175a95adafe.jpg\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/standard\/240\/cpsprodpb\/f530\/live\/b59f3c50-423f-11f0-88ff-7175a95adafe.jpg 240w, https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/standard\/320\/cpsprodpb\/f530\/live\/b59f3c50-423f-11f0-88ff-7175a95adafe.jpg 320w, https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/standard\/480\/cpsprodpb\/f530\/live\/b59f3c50-423f-11f0-88ff-7175a95adafe.jpg 480w, https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/standard\/624\/cpsprodpb\/f530\/live\/b59f3c50-423f-11f0-88ff-7175a95adafe.jpg 624w, https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/standard\/800\/cpsprodpb\/f530\/live\/b59f3c50-423f-11f0-88ff-7175a95adafe.jpg 800w, https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/standard\/976\/cpsprodpb\/f530\/live\/b59f3c50-423f-11f0-88ff-7175a95adafe.jpg 976w\" alt=\"Kiera, dressed in a black hooded top, can be seen looking at the camera. She is seated and a garden can be seen in the window behind her.\" width=\"3840\" height=\"2160.0416160915556\" \/><\/picture><\/span><\/div>\n<p>Kiera, 19, had to wait nearly 10 years for the people who sexually abused her to see justice after Lancashire Police lost crucial interview recordings<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"ssrcss-suhx0k-RichTextComponentWrapper ep2nwvo0\" data-component=\"text-block\">\n<div class=\"ssrcss-1o5p6v2-RichTextContainer e5tfeyi1\">\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">When Kiera was just nine years old she gave an interview on camera to Lancashire Police describing the harrowing details of the sexual abuse she had been subjected to over several years.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">But a few months later, she says, police officers told her mother they had lost the recording.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">&#8220;It was really hard, because I sat there for hours and hours telling people what had happened to me and for that to be lost, I just thought like what&#8217;s the point in doing it again?&#8221; said Kiera, now 19.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">&#8220;They did want me to do it again, but I just couldn&#8217;t go through with it at the time.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">It wasn&#8217;t until nine years later, when Kiera was an adult, that she felt strong enough to provide her evidence again.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">In October 2024, her perpetrators were jailed for almost 30 years for raping and sexually assaulting seven children, including her.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">&#8220;It can really affect someone&#8217;s mental state. It&#8217;s also not protecting other people because these people then don&#8217;t get convicted of crimes.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">A Lancashire Police spokesperson apologised for the lost interview disc in her case, and said, since 2015, it had introduced new processes to prevent similar issues happening again.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">Responding to the BBC&#8217;s findings, Katie Kempen, chief executive at independent charity Victim Support, said: &#8220;Police forces must ensure crimes are thoroughly investigated and evidence is handled appropriately and sensitively.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">&#8220;All victim-survivors deserve the opportunity to seek justice.&#8221;<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"ssrcss-1o1fzgd-ComponentWrapper-HeadlineComponentWrapper egtrm1f0\" data-component=\"subheadline-block\">\n<h2 id=\"The-amount-of-it-is-overwhelming\" class=\"ssrcss-pbttu9-Heading e10rt3ze0\" tabindex=\"-1\"><span role=\"text\">&#8216;The amount of it is overwhelming&#8217;<\/span><\/h2>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"ssrcss-suhx0k-RichTextComponentWrapper ep2nwvo0\" data-component=\"text-block\">\n<div class=\"ssrcss-1o5p6v2-RichTextContainer e5tfeyi1\">\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">Former police officers have told the BBC they are not surprised by the findings.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">&#8220;It&#8217;s [evidence] chucked all over the place,&#8221; said one former officer.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">&#8220;The amount of it is overwhelming\u2026 it&#8217;s unsurprising it gets lost or damaged,&#8221; another told the BBC.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">Professor Carole McCartney, a criminologist and expert in evidence retention believes the loss of the dedicated Forensic Science Service (FSS) in 2012 is one of the reasons behind the growing proportion of cases affected by unavailable evidence.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">Before 2012, all police forces could send exhibits that needed storing or analysing to the service, but the government-owned company was closed that year after making large losses.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">Since then, police forces have had to make their own evidence storage arrangements and contract private providers for forensic services.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">Prof McCartney said she had witnessed an officer pull out what he called a &#8220;box of horrors&#8221; from underneath a desk which contained various pieces of un-catalogued evidence including a plastic bag with a broken wine bottle in it and a car numberplate.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">All Items held by the FSS from before 2012 were moved to a different facility &#8211; the National Forensics Archive just outside of Birmingham &#8211; that year, but that archive is for unsolved cases only and does not accept new items.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">Exhibits in the archive were crucial in overturning the convictions of both\u00a0<a class=\"ssrcss-f6h2dj-InlineLink e1kn3p7n0\" href=\"https:\/\/www.bbc.co.uk\/news\/uk-england-manchester-66310919\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Andrew Malkinson<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0<a class=\"ssrcss-f6h2dj-InlineLink e1kn3p7n0\" href=\"https:\/\/www.bbc.co.uk\/news\/articles\/ce809e3gd1xo\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Peter Sullivan.<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"ssrcss-10wcwg8-ComponentWrapper-FullWidthWrapper ep2nwvo1\" data-component=\"image-block\">\n<figure class=\"ssrcss-12gl1u2-StyledFigure e34k3c22\">\n<div class=\"ssrcss-ab5fd8-StyledFigureContainer e34k3c21\"><span class=\"ssrcss-sft8a2-Placeholder etlorgc0\"><picture><source srcset=\"https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/standard\/240\/cpsprodpb\/8932\/live\/0eadd450-4169-11f0-835b-310c7b938e84.jpg.webp 240w, https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/standard\/320\/cpsprodpb\/8932\/live\/0eadd450-4169-11f0-835b-310c7b938e84.jpg.webp 320w, https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/standard\/480\/cpsprodpb\/8932\/live\/0eadd450-4169-11f0-835b-310c7b938e84.jpg.webp 480w, https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/standard\/624\/cpsprodpb\/8932\/live\/0eadd450-4169-11f0-835b-310c7b938e84.jpg.webp 624w, https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/standard\/800\/cpsprodpb\/8932\/live\/0eadd450-4169-11f0-835b-310c7b938e84.jpg.webp 800w, https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/standard\/976\/cpsprodpb\/8932\/live\/0eadd450-4169-11f0-835b-310c7b938e84.jpg.webp 976w\" type=\"image\/webp\" \/><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"ssrcss-11yxrdo-Image edrdn950\" src=\"https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/standard\/3840\/cpsprodpb\/8932\/live\/0eadd450-4169-11f0-835b-310c7b938e84.jpg\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/standard\/240\/cpsprodpb\/8932\/live\/0eadd450-4169-11f0-835b-310c7b938e84.jpg 240w, https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/standard\/320\/cpsprodpb\/8932\/live\/0eadd450-4169-11f0-835b-310c7b938e84.jpg 320w, https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/standard\/480\/cpsprodpb\/8932\/live\/0eadd450-4169-11f0-835b-310c7b938e84.jpg 480w, https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/standard\/624\/cpsprodpb\/8932\/live\/0eadd450-4169-11f0-835b-310c7b938e84.jpg 624w, https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/standard\/800\/cpsprodpb\/8932\/live\/0eadd450-4169-11f0-835b-310c7b938e84.jpg 800w, https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/standard\/976\/cpsprodpb\/8932\/live\/0eadd450-4169-11f0-835b-310c7b938e84.jpg 976w\" alt=\"Alison Fendley can be seen in a light blazer - she has opened a manilla folder containing evidence at the forensics archive and is looking through paperwork within it.\" width=\"3840\" height=\"2160\" \/><\/picture><\/span><\/div><figcaption class=\"ssrcss-bm8gf8-StyledFigureCaption ehbdhz00\">\n<div class=\"ssrcss-1ml6m0y-Stack e1y4nx260\">\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">Executive director of the National Forensics Archive Alison Fendley reviews one of the case files.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"ssrcss-suhx0k-RichTextComponentWrapper ep2nwvo0\" data-component=\"text-block\">\n<div class=\"ssrcss-1o5p6v2-RichTextContainer e5tfeyi1\">\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">Its director Alison Fendley says that without a dedicated forensic service, police forces were currently suffering from a lack of resources and expertise at a local level.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">&#8220;Police forces have got lots of other things to do &#8211; archiving is not their day job and there&#8217;s so much material coming and going it must be difficult to keep on top of,&#8221; she says.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">Meanwhile, backlogs at courts, the growth in online crime and the increase in digital evidence such as body worn video are all adding to a growth in the amount of exhibits police have to keep.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">The NPCC said police and the CPS worked together to ensure evidence was &#8220;gathered and presented in a timely manner, bringing offenders to justice and ensuring victims are safeguarded&#8221;.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">It said the data obtained by the BBC refers to all evidence that is either missing or unavailable when a defendant is going to trial after being charged.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">And this could include situations where police cannot find an expert witness or may not be able to obtain a required medical statement.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"ssrcss-10wcwg8-ComponentWrapper-FullWidthWrapper ep2nwvo1\" data-component=\"image-block\">\n<figure class=\"ssrcss-12gl1u2-StyledFigure e34k3c22\">\n<div class=\"ssrcss-ab5fd8-StyledFigureContainer e34k3c21\"><span class=\"ssrcss-9w8jzy-Placeholder etlorgc0\"><picture><source srcset=\"https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/standard\/240\/cpsprodpb\/01b3\/live\/7c324220-416b-11f0-835b-310c7b938e84.jpg.webp 240w, https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/standard\/320\/cpsprodpb\/01b3\/live\/7c324220-416b-11f0-835b-310c7b938e84.jpg.webp 320w, https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/standard\/480\/cpsprodpb\/01b3\/live\/7c324220-416b-11f0-835b-310c7b938e84.jpg.webp 480w, https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/standard\/624\/cpsprodpb\/01b3\/live\/7c324220-416b-11f0-835b-310c7b938e84.jpg.webp 624w, https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/standard\/800\/cpsprodpb\/01b3\/live\/7c324220-416b-11f0-835b-310c7b938e84.jpg.webp 800w, https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/standard\/976\/cpsprodpb\/01b3\/live\/7c324220-416b-11f0-835b-310c7b938e84.jpg.webp 976w\" type=\"image\/webp\" \/><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"ssrcss-11yxrdo-Image edrdn950\" src=\"https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/standard\/3840\/cpsprodpb\/01b3\/live\/7c324220-416b-11f0-835b-310c7b938e84.jpg\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/standard\/240\/cpsprodpb\/01b3\/live\/7c324220-416b-11f0-835b-310c7b938e84.jpg 240w, https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/standard\/320\/cpsprodpb\/01b3\/live\/7c324220-416b-11f0-835b-310c7b938e84.jpg 320w, https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/standard\/480\/cpsprodpb\/01b3\/live\/7c324220-416b-11f0-835b-310c7b938e84.jpg 480w, https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/standard\/624\/cpsprodpb\/01b3\/live\/7c324220-416b-11f0-835b-310c7b938e84.jpg 624w, https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/standard\/800\/cpsprodpb\/01b3\/live\/7c324220-416b-11f0-835b-310c7b938e84.jpg 800w, https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/ace\/standard\/976\/cpsprodpb\/01b3\/live\/7c324220-416b-11f0-835b-310c7b938e84.jpg 976w\" alt=\"Baroness Casey clutches a copy of her report into the behaviour and culture at the Metropolitan Police Service. She is walking towards the camera wearing a green, waxed jacket and is carrying a leather shoulder bag.\" width=\"3840\" height=\"2560.7314285714283\" \/><\/picture><\/span>Baroness Casey&#8217;s review into the standards of behaviour and internal culture of the Metropolitan Police Service found officers were having to store evidence in &#8220;over-stuffed, dilapidated or broken fridges.&#8221; (Image: PA Media)<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"ssrcss-suhx0k-RichTextComponentWrapper ep2nwvo0\" data-component=\"text-block\">\n<div class=\"ssrcss-1o5p6v2-RichTextContainer e5tfeyi1\">\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">A number of recent reports have raised serious concerns about police storage of evidence.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">In 2022,\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/hmicfrs.justiceinspectorates.gov.uk\/publication-html\/how-well-the-police-and-other-agencies-use-digital-forensics-in-their-investigations\/#:~:text=As%20technology%20has%20developed%20and%2Cit%20by%20the%20digital%20age\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">His Majesty&#8217;s inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue Services (HMICFRS) found police forces were &#8220;struggling to meet the demands placed on it by the digital age&#8221;<\/a> as a result of the fast growth in digital evidence.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\"><a href=\"https:\/\/journals.sagepub.com\/doi\/10.1177\/14613557231203493\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">The University of Leicester&#8217;s study into police retention of investigative materials<\/a>\u00a0found three quarters of lawyers it surveyed had worked on a criminal conviction where evidence had been lost, destroyed or contaminated. Almost half claimed this had happened on multiple occasions.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">And <a href=\"https:\/\/www.met.police.uk\/police-forces\/metropolitan-police\/areas\/about-us\/about-the-met\/bcr\/baroness-casey-review\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Baroness Casey&#8217;s 2023 review into the culture of the Metropolitan Police<\/a>\u00a0found officers having to contend with &#8220;over-stuffed, dilapidated or broken fridges and freezers containing evidence including the rape kits of victims&#8221;.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">It found an &#8220;overworked and inexperienced workforce&#8221; lacked the &#8220;infrastructure and specialism&#8221; for dealing with sexual offences, which existed before a specialist unit was disbanded in 2019.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">The BBC study found around one in 20 prosecutions by the Met had been dropped as a result of missing evidence between 2020 and 2024.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">By comparison around one in 50 were dropped across England and Wales.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">The Met said the number included situations where police could not find an expert witness or were not able to obtain a required medical statement and to suggest it was simply down to lost evidence was misleading.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">It acknowledged that on &#8220;a rare number of occasions&#8221; evidence is misplaced, adding: &#8220;We continue to make improvements to our recording systems to minimise this risk.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">The NPCC said: &#8220;When evidential issues occur in a case, the CPS will raise this with police for any action deemed necessary and we will work together to ensure these are resolved wherever possible.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p class=\"ssrcss-1q0x1qg-Paragraph e1jhz7w10\">The results of a consultation by the Law Commission, which proposed re-establishing a national forensic service and making the mishandling of evidence a criminal offence in some circumstances, are set to go before Parliament next week.<\/p>\n<p>Source: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bbc.co.uk\/news\/articles\/c3e5289d3njo\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">bbc.co.uk<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<div class=\"mh-excerpt\">Thousands of criminal cases &#8211; including some of the most serious violent and sexual offences &#8211; are collapsing every year because of lost, damaged or missing evidence, the BBC has found. More than 30,000 prosecutions <a class=\"mh-excerpt-more\" href=\"https:\/\/worldjusticenews.com\/news\/2025\/06\/06\/thousands-of-uk-criminal-cases-collapsing-due-to-missing-or-lost-police-evidence\/\" title=\"Thousands of UK criminal cases collapsing due to missing or lost police evidence\">[&#8230;]<\/a><\/div>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":29469,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"pmpro_default_level":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[109,2,4],"tags":[1746,3369,242,11362,1745,10691,2369,11360,11361,970],"class_list":{"0":"post-29468","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-headline","8":"category-news","9":"category-uk","10":"tag-crown-prosecution-service","11":"tag-england","12":"tag-evidence","13":"tag-forensic-science-service","14":"tag-freedom-of-information","15":"tag-lancashire-police","16":"tag-law-commission","17":"tag-national-forensics-archive","18":"tag-university-of-leicester","19":"tag-wales","20":"pmpro-has-access"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/worldjusticenews.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29468","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/worldjusticenews.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/worldjusticenews.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/worldjusticenews.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/worldjusticenews.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=29468"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/worldjusticenews.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29468\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":29470,"href":"https:\/\/worldjusticenews.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29468\/revisions\/29470"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/worldjusticenews.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/29469"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/worldjusticenews.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=29468"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/worldjusticenews.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=29468"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/worldjusticenews.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=29468"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}