UK's worst crime hotspots in London
Six of the UK's top 10 most crime-ridden postcodes are in London, Home Office figures reveal - with the worst spot of all a stone's throw from the Olympic Park.
Meridian Square in Stratford saw 3,440 crimes in 18 months, nearly 1,000 more than the next-most troubled postcode.
That was Westfield shopping centre in Shepherd's Bush, west London, which had 2,524 reported incidents.
A spokesman for the Metropolitan Police said crime was falling.
He said: "Our figures for the 12 months to end of June show total notifiable offences falling by 7%.
"Robbery fell by 10.6% and shoplifting is down by 5.7%.
"In short, crime in London is at its lowest level for a decade."
'Place to stay'
According to Home Office statistics, covering from January 2012 to June 2013, the Stratford postcode, in the borough of Newham, saw 500 shoplifting offences, almost 300 violent crimes and hundreds of pick-pocketings and muggings.
Newham Council is yet to comment. The authority describes the borough as "a place where people choose to live, work and stay".
Meanwhile four of the top five worst postcodes for drug offences were also in London, with Victoria Coach Station seeing the highest number at 581.
The figures came from the Home Office website and were verified by the Metropolitan Police.