By Zaldy Comanda
BAGUIO CITY - Crime incidents in the city continue to drop not only over the past two years but also for the first four months of this year.
Baguio police officer-in-charge Col. Allen Rae F. Co said from January to April this year, crime incidents went down by 316 incidents or 27 percent, compared to the incidents in the same period last year, when there were 1,150 crimes recorded.
Co said index crimes, which comprise of crimes against property, robbery, theft, carnapping and crimes against persons, homicide, murder, rape and physical injuries, decreased by 22 incidents or 16 percent.
The bulk of the recorded crimes were vehicular accidents, with nine homicides, 394 physical injuries and 1,757 damage to property due to reckless imprudence.
Co said what is notable in the decrease is the emphasis on the reduction of index crimes from 703 in 2017 to 409 last year, or almost half.
The two most prevalent crimes in the city, physical injuries and theft, significantly decreased by 46 percent and 45 percent, respectively.
Co said that when people in the community trust the police, are highly confident of their work and cooperate fully with them, the policemen will be enabled, will feel better about themselves, thus, they will perform better, work their best and produce greater results.
He thanked the city government, the stakeholders, different volunteer groups, and the community for supporting the police through the years.
The good working relationship between the police and the community was evident during the May 13 midterm elections, where Baguio was commended for having one of the most peaceful and orderly polls in the country.