The number of recorded sex crimes has soared in the north-east over the past 12 months.
There has also been an increase in prostitution-related crimes during the same period.
Police Scotland have published figures for April to December 2015, which show a surge in recorded sex offences in Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire when compared with the year before.
However, in Moray, the number of similar crimes has plummeted during the same period.
According to the statistics, there was a rise of 30% in the number of recorded offences in the city, from 361 to 469.
And in Aberdeenshire, there was an increase of just under 20%, from 245 to 291.
But during the same period, in Moray, the number of recorded offences fell by 14%.
The latest figures come just a month after a 21-year-old woman was raped in Aberdeen’s Union Terrace Gardens.
A major investigation is ongoing with police still trying to trace the perpetrator.
Rape Crisis Scotland said that whatever the explanation for the increase, it was vital victims of the “devastating” crime continued to be supported.
A spokeswoman said: “It’s always difficult to know exactly what the reasons are for a rise in the number of sexual crimes such as that indicated by the figures for Aberdeen published today.
“While it may be that this is indicative of an increased willingness among survivors to report what has happened to them because they feel more confident in the response they will receive from the police, it’s equally possible that a larger number of crimes has been perpetrated.
“Either way, sexual offences can have a devastating impact and there is no room for complacency.”
Meanwhile the number of prostitution-related crimes recorded in Aberdeen shot up by 96%, from 29 to 57.
The police were unavailable to comment on the figures last night.