CEBU CITY – No major incident was recorded during the Holy Week in Central Visayas.
The Police Regional Office-Central Visayas (PRO-7) said the eight focus crimes – murder, homicide, physical injury, rape, robbery, theft, carnapping of motor vehicles, and carnapping of motorcycles – dropped by 11.32 percent from March 29 to April 5. The PRO-7 said that 611 crimes were recorded compared to 689 in the same period last year.
The significant drop came from index crimes comprising the eight focus crimes which declined 32.65 percent from 49 in 2025 to 33 in 2026.
The PRO-7 said intensified police visibility, preventive police patrols, and security deployments in areas where most people gather during the Holy Week contributed to the downtrend.
Three-hundred twenty-eight non-index crimes were recorded in 2025 but they went up 38.72 percent to 455 this year.
Vehicular accidents during Holy Week dropped 60.58 percent this year to 123 from 312 in 2025 due to improved road conditions and effective traffic management.
Police Brig. Gen. Redrico Maranan, chief of PRO-7, said the peaceful observance of Holy Week showed dedication, vigilance, and close coordination between the police, partner-agencies, local government units, and the community.
“Our men and women of Police Regional Office-7 remained fully committed to their duty throughout the Holy Week to ensure that our communities, churches, transport terminals, tourist destinations, and other areas of convergence remained safe despite the influx of travelers and devotees,” Maranan said.
“The significant decrease in the eight focus crimes shows the effectiveness of our proactive policing strategies and the dedication of our personnel on the ground,” added Maranan.