The number of rape victims pulling out of prosecutions has reached the highest level since records began, shocking figures show.
The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) has been accused of betraying victims as the number abandoning hope of getting justice and dropping out of their case has doubled in the last two years amid long waits for cases to come to court and a lack of support.
According to the latest figures, 98 rape prosecutions were ditched between January and March this year because the victim no longer supported the prosecution - the highest number since records began in 2023.
That represents a 51 per cent increase compared to the previous quarter and it is double the 47 aborted prosecutions recorded from April to June 2023, when CPS first started publishing data relating to 'victim attrition'.
In the last five years there has been almost a four-fold increase in the number of rape cases dropped by prosecutors, legal analysis shows.
