Crime incidents in Metro Manila went down by 80% -Sinas

The crime incidents in Metro Manila went down by 80% since the community quarantine was implemented, National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO) chief Police Major General Debold Sinas said Friday.

"Malaki po, 80% po ang ibinaba ng crimes... There is a decrease, we are observing it kasi nga walang tao sa kalye, walang ganon pero despite of everything nanghuhuli pa rin 'yung tao natin ng mga nang-aabuso para po mapigilan po sila," Sinas said at a press briefing.

"Despite na naggagawa tayo ng quarantine, may mangilan-ngilan lang naman 'yan but we assure you, mababa po talaga ang crime natin" he said.

He said he would release more data regarding the drop in the crime rate in the coming days as NCRPO is still in the process of collating the statistics.

The Metro Manila police chief made the statement amid the killing of a 74-year-old widow in a gated village in Paranaque City.

On Thursday, Philippine National Police deputy chief for operations Police Lieutenant General Guillermo Eleazar said the crime rate decreased following the enhanced community quarantine in Luzon.

He attributed the drop in crime rate to the presence of police personnel in over a thousand checkpoints across Luzon.

“Bumaba ang criminality rate with the 1,300 checkpoint in placed all over Luzon and more than 10,000 personnel,” he said in an interview with Unang Balita.

President Rodrigo Duterte initially placed Metro Manila under community quarantine as Code Red Sub-Level 2 was raised over the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).

Days after, the President placed the entire Luzon under enhanced community quarantine due to the continuing increase in the number of COVID-19 cases. This means stricter control points to contain the spread of the disease.—AOL, GMA News