Updated 14.54
THE CATEGORY OF ‘kidnapping and related offences’ was the only heading that showed an increase in the 12 months up to the end of March this year. Decreases were recorded in each of the other 14 areas monitored by the CSO.
The latest stats published today show a rise of almost six per cent under the ‘kidnappings’ heading in that period, with the number of recorded cases rising from 103 to 109. This was mainly down to a rise in false imprisonment cases, which increased from 69 to 80.
Organised crime was down year-on-year, according to today’s stats. There was a 16 per cent decrease in the category ‘Offences against Government, justice procedures and organisation of crime’.
Elsewhere, the largest of the decreases were in relation to weapons and explosives offences (-14.3 per cent), controlled drugs (-12.7), public order infringements (-12.5) and ‘dangerous or negligent acts’ (-12.5).
Homicide was down 4.4 per cent in the period between the start of April 2012 and the end of March this year. There were 65 recorded cases, compared to 68 in the previous 12 months.
A drop of 6.8 per cent in sexual offences was recorded, while burglaries were down 9.1 per cent.
Justice Minister Alan Shatter has welcomed the drop in burglaries in particular. He said in a statement:
(It is a) is a clear demonstration of the effectiveness of the measures which the Garda Commissioner has put in place under Operation Fiacla to successfully disrupt and bring before the courts those who seek to prey on law abiding householders.
The minister expressed concern over the rise in kidnapping offences, and in a recorded increase under the theft sub-category ‘theft from the person’, which includes mobile phone theft. He said:
This type of theft is all too easy for those intent on criminality. I would urge members of the public to take great care with regard to how they use and where they keep their phones as they go about their daily lives.
Reacting to the figures, Independent TD Catherine Murphy said the drop in crime was an inevitable reflection of cuts to the Garda force. The Kildare deputy said that the reduction in recorded crime was most likely down to fewer criminals being caught due to the lack of officers:
The reality is that when you have a Garda force that is so thin on the ground, many criminal acts go undetected and unreported because, quite simply, there are no Gardaí around to ‘catch’ the criminal act as it happens.
The TD said that under-detection of criminal offences was leading to ongoing misleading statistics about falling crime rates.
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