NEW DATA on crime trends in the Republic show a fall in the number of murder, assault, drugs and gun offences recorded by gardaí in the third quarter of this year.
The Central Statistics Office (CSO) also reported a 16 per cent fall in the number of burglaries – to 6,016 – and a 15 per cent reduction in drink driving offences – to 2,776 – in the three months to the end of September.
There were 11 murders during the third quarter, one less than in the same period last year, and a 10 per cent fall in cases of assault and harassment to 4,284. No manslaughter offences were recorded.
A total of 5,326 controlled drug offences were recorded, down 11 per cent on the same period in 2009, according to the CSO’s crime data for the third quarter of the year which was published yesterday.
However, there was a 138 per cent increase in the number of people found cultivating drugs, to 191 cases and a 4.8 per cent rise in cases where individuals possessed drugs for sale or supply.
Gardaí recorded 936 weapons and explosives offences, 8.2 per cent fewer than in the same period last year.
Incidents of theft fell by half of 1 per cent to 19,908 and there were 273 (1.7 per cent) fewer public order offences.
The number of kidnapping and human trafficking offences was also down, as were arson offences which fell by 20 per cent to 642.
There was a 21 per cent increase in the number of robbery, extortion and hijacking offences, to 714, and a 1 per cent increase in cases of fraud, to 1,189.
There was a sharp rise (79 per cent) in the number of sexual offences recorded, but the CSO said this could be attributed in the main to an ongoing Garda review of all such cases which had resulted in a considerable number of incidents from the past being reclassified.
