Monday, 25 February 2013

Statisticians make shock discovery: There are more people in densely built up areas!

From The Daily Mail:

Police have lost track of almost 140 paedophiles, sparking fears(1) many may have left the country, it has been revealed. Government figures show a total of 137 child sex offenders have disappeared after signing the sex offenders' register, which requires them to inform police of their whereabouts or any changes to their details.

The shock figures show the Metropolitan Police has lost by far the most paedophiles, with 40 on the run from the authorities in London.(2)


1) Shouldn't that be "hopes"? If UK offenders clear off abroad, then that's good news from our point of view, and it's bad news when foreign offenders wash up on our shores.

2) According to the attached map, 40 went missing in London, 7 in Greater Manchester and 5 in Kent.

Population of Greater London = 8.2 million
Population of Greater Manchester = 2.7 million
Population of Kent = 1.5 million

There is no perfect correlation between the total population of an area and the number of sex offenders in it; or between the number of sex offenders and those who abscond, but it's not far off. The relative figures appear to be worse in larger cities, presumably because it's easier to disappear off the radar there.

3 comments:

Bayard said...

"If UK offenders clear off abroad, then that's good news from our point of view,"

Well it does make it more difficult to harass or lynch them.

Mark Wadsworth said...

B, are Daily Mailexpressgraph and Sun readers that spiteful?

Bayard said...

There is a strong theme amoungst their outpourings that people they disapprove of should be miserable.