The crime rate in Bacolod City went up by 5.95 percent last year, police said.
The Bacolod City Police Office said the number of crimes increased by 70 from 1,175 in 2023 to 1,245 in 2024.
BCPO headquarters (FB)
Index crimes, which include offenses against persons or property, remained at 170 incidents for two consecutive years.
Among the eight focus crimes, theft had 56 cases, followed by rape, 38; murder, 36; robbery, 15; homicide, 10; carnapping, eight; and physical injury, seven.
Murder cases in 2024 went up to 20 from 16 in 2023.
Police Lt. Col. Lester Leada, head of the Bacolod police Operation Management Unit, said grudges and drug-related were the common motive of these murder cases.
Homicide and carnapping cases increased by one each and robbery went up by three.
Rape and theft cases dropped by 18 and six cases, respectively, from 56 and 62 in 2023.
Non-index crimes, including special law violations, was up by two, a 0.28 percent increase from 716 in 2023 to 718 in 2024.
Leada said that one of the factors that contributed to the increase in the crime volume was their operational accomplishments against illegal activities.