THE Philippine National Police (PNP) reported a 13.51 percent decrease in index crimes in the first 10 months of 2024.
IN a recent press briefing at Camp Crame, Philippine National Police (PNP) information chief and spokesperson Brig Gen. Jean Fajardo said that 30,322 index crime incidents were recorded from January 1 to November 8, lower than the 35,057 recorded in the same period last year.
During the same period, the police also recorded 30,166 focus crime incidents, a 13.52 percent decrease compared to the 34,883 incidents recorded in the same period in 2023.
Focus crimes include murder, homicide, physical injury, rape, theft, robbery, vehicle theft, and motorcycle theft.
However, motor vehicle theft increased by 1.42 percent, with 1,714 cases compared to 1,690 in the same period last year. Homicide cases also rose to 995, a 3.65 percent increase compared to the 960 recorded last year.
Fajardo said that cybercrime cases in the country decreased by 5.75 percent in the third quarter of the year compared to the first six months of the year.
Based on the latest data, Fajardo said that 3,494 cybercrime cases were recorded from July to September this year compared to 3,707 in the second quarter, and 4,354 in the first quarter.
According to the PNP Anti-Cybercrime Group, the downtrend in cybercrimes, such as online scams, is attributed to improved enforcement and awareness campaigns.
Fajardo emphasized that PNP chief Gen. Rommel Francisco Marbil’s directive to continue implementing police interventions to maintain the declining crime rate, especially during the upcoming holiday season, is being enforced.
“His instructions to the commanders are to strictly supervise our personnel in the field because our chief PNP says that our subordinates, especially our foot patrols, are the representation of the PNP. So, they should be seen as being true to their duty because what the people in the field do reflects on the PNP as a whole,” Fajardo explained.
Meanwhile, from January 1 to November 2, the PNP arrested 49,621 drug offenders in 40,351 police operations, resulting in the confiscation of P19.29 billion worth of illegal drugs.
