While the Guyana Police Force reports that there has been an 8% drop in serious crimes for the first seven months of the year, a glance at the murder and robbery figures for the same period tell a different story.
The statistics in relation to the offences of murder and robbery under arms for the period January 01 to July 31, 2014, with corresponding statistics for the same period in 2013, are attached.
According to the Police Force, the total number of reports of serious crimes made between January 01 and July 31, 2014, was 2,134 compared to 2,317 for the same period in 2013.
However, by the end of July 2014, over 80 murders had been recorded which represents a 10% increase in the murder rate over the same period for the previous year.
“Of the 80 murders committed unto July 2014, 3 were of the execution type, 16 were committed during robberies, 21 were domestic related, 17 were of the disorderly type and 23 are so far undetermined”, the Police Force said in a statement.
Additionally, at the end of July 2014 robbery under arms saw an increased by 16%, with 679 reports compared to 585 for the same period in 2013. The Police statement said “the statistics indicate an increase of 27% in the number of armed robberies involving the use of firearms; and a 2% decrease in armed robberies where instruments other than firearms were used by the perpetrators.”
Over the past three years, the murder and robbery rate in the country has been climbing steadily and the majority of cases remain unsolved mysteries.
There have been calls for the Police Force to employ stronger investigative skills. A new forensic laboratory was recently opened and it is hoped that the new facility will assist investigators.
The Opposition Leader David Granger has said that Guyana is facing a security crisis and the Government appears lost as to the best way to tackle the problem. The Police Force has been seeing an increase in some of its resources that should aid in the crime fight.
Already for the month of August, a number of murders have already been recorded.
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