No 519
Monday, 12th May, 2014
Tel: 96 673 0057
CRIME RATES DOWN IN SPAIN isdemeanours and crime affecting victims aged over 64 increased last year by 7.1% compared to the data of 2012, with burglaries and robberies seeing a staggering 29.2% recorded increase, thefts were up 10% as were reported scams, up by 9.9%, however records of street robberies should an equally dramatic shift, but this time decreasing by 21.1%, according to figures released by the Ministry of the Interior. The details were released as part of a Safer Society initiative launched last year, the first time such a campaign has focused on the over 64 age group, who represent 17.7% of the population of the country. As a result, the police embarked on a nationwide campaign visiting the elderly members of society, with pre-
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sentations at over 2,200 daycare centres, as well as visits to individuals to offer crime prevention advice. The initiative also looked specifically at crime in schools, where a 3.7% decrease was recorded overall. The data collected serves to allow better policing in crime prevention and detection, as investigators become more aware of trends in crime, and are subsequently able to deal with more issues in advance. Figures released this week reveal the crime statistics for the first quarter of this year now indicate an overall drop of 4.1% compared to the same period of 2013, with the records being collated to include national figures, but also broken down into Autonomous Communities and provinces. In addition, for the first time, data from the provincial capitals and cities with more than 50,000 inhabitants (according to the official census of the National Statistics Institute to the date of January 1, 2013) are given. Continued on Page 2