PNP: Crime rate down by 20% in January

Criminal incidents in the country dropped by more than 3,000 in January alone or a 20-percent dip compared to the same period last year, according to the Philippine National Police said Friday.

 

Citing records from the PNP's Directorate for Investigation and Detective Management (DIDM), PNP spokesman Chief Superintendent Agrimero Cruz Jr. said 11,379 "index crime incidents" nationwide were recorded last month, down from 14,227 cases in January last year.

 

"If the January crime trend is an indication of thing s to come in the months ahead, then we can certainly look forward to an improved peace and order situation towards the rest of the year," Cruz said.

 

Index crimes — which Cruz said were "valid indicators" —  include crimes against persons such as murder, homicide, physical injuries and rape; and crime against property such as robbery, theft, carnapping and cattle-rustling. 

 

“Crime is not a runaway problem because the criminal justice system is fully functional and certainty of punishment has been fully established as an effective deterrent to crime,” Cruz said.

 

While crime rate went down by 20 percent, crime solution efficiency went up by 28 percent, "indicating better police performance in solving crime cases," Cruz said.

 

Despite its improvement in crime solving, the PNP still aims on focusing its forces on crime prevention to intensified police visibility and operations in the country, the PNP spokesman said. — with Mark Merueñas/RSJ, GMA News