Assaults on Police doubled as crime in Bermuda surged by 16 percent in the first three months of 1997.

Sex molesters of young people and burglars have also been on the prowl in ever increasing numbers over last year.

Public Safety Minister Quinton Edness at the weekend voiced concern at the crime wave.

And he pinned the blame on professional criminals re-offending after being freed from prison or let out on bail.

"We have now caught several in the last month or so and figures on burglary have gone down since that time. This will be reflected in the next statistics.'' Mr. Edness said the new Premier Pamela Gordon was looking into the problem of career criminals.

"We are discussing ways how we can handle them. There was a suggestion about monitoring these people.'' The rise in sexual exploitation of young people was also worrying -- but could be largely linked to improved methods of reporting the crime, Mr. Edness added.

"There are also better Police methods of interviewing and the Women's Resource Centre has been a major help on this issue.

"I think as a result mothers are more confident about reporting these offences.'' Along with first quarter 1997 statistics, Detective Supt. Vic Richmond on Friday released figures for the same periods in 1994, '95 and '96.

In the first three months of this year there were 756 offences -- 15.6 percent more than the 654 reported in 1996.

The numbers, however, were 39 and 29.5 percent down on '95 and '94 respectively.

Assaults on Police have shot up 100 percent over l996 from eight to 16 as crimes of violence rose from 82 to 91.

And there have been six cases of sexual exploitation of a young person, as opposed to none last year.

Burglaries, meanwhile, stand at 71 -- a dramatic jump on 1996's figure of 22, although down on '95 and '94.

Statistics -- compared with those for 1996 -- also show: Sexual assaults rose from 16 to 19; violently resisting arrest cases from three to seven; firearms offences from zero to one; attempted robberies from two to five and handbag snatching from four to six.

In addition, housebreaking rose from 71 to 75; store break-ins from 26 to 29; and office break-ins from 14 to 33.

The total number of breaking offences shot up from 210 to 313, while that of thefts surged from 65 to 81.

Not all the news was bleak, however.

Career criminals From Page 1 Armed robberies dropped from 26 to 13; school break-ins from 19 to 12; removed cars from nine to six; removed motorcycles from 156 to 134; and removed auxiliary bikes from 80 to 73.

Police spokesperson Evelyn James Barnett also blamed the crime surge on career criminals released from prison.

"Others who are caught and arrested are put back out on the streets in a short amount of time either on bail or on licence and continue their criminal activity.

"Police are actively engaged in measures that are expected to counteract this trend, but we would again invite members of the general public to maintain a high degree of vigilance and in the spirit of community Policing provide Police with any information.'' Informants should ring Police directly or use the Crime Stoppers "hotline'', 1-800-623-8477.

"On a more positive note, it is encouraging to see that overall cycle removals continue to fall.'' Mr. Edness said he had discussed the statistics with Police Commissioner Colin Coxall.

"What is important is that these statistics have credibility. Police are not against releasing figures which are unfavourable.'' Mr. Edness described the rise in violent crime as "disturbing''.

"While the stats are down over 1994 and '95, they have gone up over last year.

"One has to be concerned about violent crime. We obviously have to do something about those who sexually exploit young people and when a person carries out an assault on a Policeman people should be made aware it's a serious crime.'' "I am pleased we are making progress with the removal of cycles, but I still urge people to support the Police.

"They should report activities and when something happens provide Police with information.

"There are certain people who are professional criminals and no matter what you do they will re-offend.

"You have to lock them up for long periods, although many people are rehabilitated once they leave prison.'' CRIME CRM