Review of rape cases finds police failings Intelligence failings mean that police are missing evidence of serial rapists, according to an official review of rape investigations. A joint report by the inspectorates of police and crown prosecutors published on Tuesday says that "rape problem profiles" tracking all attacks in a particular area are only being kept up to date in three out of 43 police forces, making it difficult to draw connections between attacks. It says every rape by a "stranger" should be assumed to be part of a pattern of serial offending from the outset. It also warns that police investigators are not fully exploiting other sources of information such as DNA samples, national intelligence material on serious sex offences and the overseas records of foreign nationals, in order to build strong prosecution cases. The study discloses that 2,131 reported rape offences were officially logged as "no crimes" in 2010-11 in England and Wales - nearly 12% of all recorded rape cases. It also shows there is still a wide variation in "no crime" rates between police forces, from 30% in Kent to 2.4% in Gloucestershire. The inspectorates say that a rape that has been reported and then recorded as a crime should only be "no-crimed" if the victim states that it did not happen, and even then further verifiable information is needed to support this, "because our experience shows that victims may withdraw allegations because they cannot face the criminal justice process." The report does not however specify what proportion of 'no crime' decisions were incorrect. The review of rape investigations by Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary and the Crown Prosecution Service follows high-profile cases such as the "Night Stalker," Delroy Grant, who raped and assaulted elderly victims over a 17-year period in London, Kent and Surrey. The report says that the criminal justice system has made progress in the way it meets the needs of rape victims but that urgent improvements are needed in the way police gather and analyse intelligence material if rapists are to be identified and prosecuted. The number of rapes recorded by the police has risen by 3,261 over the past three years - more than a quarter - with police and prosecutors saying the increase is due to victims having more confidence that their cases will be dealt with sensitively and professionally. The inspectorates say they found evidence to support this claim of the improved treatment of victims. But they say that the quality of investigations and prosecutions has not kept pace with that improvement. The report found examples of good detective work, but overall intelligence was not managed in a systematic way. Examples were: Potential links between sex attacks that had repeatedly occurred in the same general location on the same day of the week were identified by detectives talking to each other, rather than by careful analysis. One series of offences, which started with inappropriate touching of women in the street, progressed towards attempted rape. The offences were investigated by different officers and were only pulled together when a detective spotted the connection. The report says that every force needs to keep up to date 'rape problem profiles' and should consider initially that every 'stranger' rape to be part of a pattern of serial offending so that the wider links to other crimes are considered. Dru Sharpling, of Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary, said: "Whilst the service for victims is getting better, there is absolutely no room for complacency, and good intelligence, the right investigative approach and targeting resources effectively are key to preventing rape and catching perpetrators."