Rochdale is one of the most murderous places in the country

Police cordon

Rochdale is one of the most murderous places in the country, with 6.1 murder-related crimes taking place per 100,000 people, it has been revealed.

New figures from the Home Office show that the number of cases of homicide, attempted murder and conspiracy to murder place Rochdale eighth, just below neighbouring Salford in seventh and Manchester sixth.

Within the year up to September 2015, 13 such crimes took place in Rochdale, seven of which were homicides. The figures do not include the more recent months between September 2015 and May 2016.

The most recent murder investigation was launched on Sunday (8 May) after a woman’s body was found at a flat on Oldham Road:

http://www.rochdaleonline.co.uk/news-features/2/news-headlines/102830/police-launch-murder-investigation-after-body-of-a-woman-found-in-rochdale

On 6 May, Paul Anthony Bennett was charged with the murder of Joseph O’Hanlon, who was found at a flat on Town Mill Brow:

http://www.rochdaleonline.co.uk/news-features/2/news-headlines/102801/anthony-paul-bennett-charged-with-the-murder-of-joseph-ohanlon

In February, Jalal Uddin was found beaten to death in a playground:

http://www.rochdaleonline.co.uk/news-features/2/news-headlines/101570/terror-police-called-in-to-investigate-jalal-uddin%E2%80%99s-murder

Home Office Statistics

Cases of attempted murder, conspiracy to murder and homicide year to September 2015:

Cases of homicide year to September 2015:

Across England and Wales as a whole the number of homicides increased by 14 per cent from 502 to 573 over the same period. Cases of conspiracy to murder were up from 33 to 46 while attempted murders increased by a fifth from 511 to 611.