Monday, October 08, 2007
13 crimes a month in province
By Mia E. Abellana
Sun.Star Staff Reporter
SINCE January, at least 13 crimes were committed in the Province of Cebu each month.
Most of these crimes occurred at dawn on Sundays.
The Cebu Provincial Police Office (CPPO) noted that the crime volume from January to September decreased by 26 percent compared to the same period last year.
This was the report that CPPO Director Carmelo Valmoria submitted to the newly installed Police Regional Office (PRO) 7 Director Ronald Roderos.
From 3,672 crimes reported last year, the crime volume dropped to 2,714 this year.
From 2,286 index crimes in 2006, there were just 1,809 in 2007.
Of the total crime volume, 2,262 crimes were considered solved, while 452 remain unsolved.
Silence favors criminals
However, crime solution efficiency also dropped three percent this year, from 86 percent in 2006 to 83 percent.
“The reason for the decrease was the non-cooperation of witnesses with the police for fear of reprisal,” the report stated.
Valmoria, in an interview Friday, credited police visibility, the participation of “force multipliers” and the support of local government units for their improved performance.
In his report, Valmoria said the index crimes were lowest in January due to the presence of additional personnel.
Field trainees from other regions were sent to Cebu for the 12th Asean Summit.
After the summit, a “significant increase” was noted in index crimes following the withdrawal of the augmentation troops who were sent here for visibility patrols.
“On the other hand, the trend of crimes against property has been inconsistent, although theft was prevalent in the months of March and April. Nonetheless, it showed a declining trend from May to September this year,” the report read.
Common cases
Physical injuries topped the number of index crimes, with 641 incidents. This was due to the number of vehicular accidents and a result of conflicts among persons under the influence of liquor during weekends.
There were 578 thefts, 309 robberies, 11 murders, 70 rape cases and 60 homicide cases.
Lapu-Lapu City had the highest number of index crimes, making up 23 percent (423 crimes).
It is followed by Talisay City with 283 cases (16 percent), Danao City with 10 percent (183 cases), Carcar City with five percent (90 cases), and Toledo City with three percent (60 cases).
Lapu-Lapu City topped the list when it came to murder (19 cases), physical injuries (131), rape (18) and theft (181).
Talisay City, on the other hand, ranked first when it came to homicide cases (nine) and robberies (92).
According to the report, rapid urbanization, urban migration and population density were factors that affected the crime rate of a particular place.
“Lapu-Lapu, being the most populous with a large number of transient people in a given day among the seven cities and 44 municipalities in the province, registered the highest number of crimes committed,” it read.
Murder and homicide cases happened mostly on a Sunday from 6 p.m. to midnight.
Rape cases occurred mostly on a Tuesday from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m.
Robberies and thefts usually happened on weekends and on Tuesdays from midnight to 3 a.m.
Despite the declining crime volume, Valmoria expects an increase in theft and robbery cases as the Christmas season draws near, saying this has been a trend in the past years.
For Bisaya stories from Cebu. Click here. (October 8, 2007 issue)
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