Special police measures to prevent and fight crime have resulted in a dramatic drop in most serious cases reported last year, according to police statistics for 2007 just released. Cases of murder, blackmail, and rape have dropped between 23.2 per cent and 42.9 percent compared to 2006, said the Secretary for Security, Mr Cheong Kuoc Va, in releasing last year’s crime statistics this morning. He said total crimes reported have gone 19 per cent up to 12,921 cases, and violent crime has slightly increased, by 4.4%. There was no report of kidnap in 2007. Crimes against property made up of 52.9 per cent of total crime, while crimes against people accounted for 21.4 percent. Crimes against people, one of the five major categories of crimes classified in the Penal Code of Macao, rose by 9.6 per cent to 2,760. Wounding cases increased by 6.5 per cent to 1,915 cases, while criminal intimidation cases slightly increased, by 1.5 per cent. There was an increase of 22 cases of false imprisonment. Crimes against property rose 24.1 percent with 6,835 cases, with pick-pocketing and robbery cases up by 77.7 percent. Meanwhile, blackmail and loan-sharking cases dropped by 14.4 per cent and 23.2 per cent respectively. Crimes against society recorded a rise of 11.1 per cent, the increase attributed to a 38 percent increase in the use of counterfeit banknotes. There were 888 cases of crimes against public order, with false declaration cases having fallen by 15.3 percent. Other crimes not included in the above classifications recorded an increase of 19.9 per cent, with 1,018 cases. On the other hand, drug abuse cases rose by 84.7 percent, while drugs trafficking dropped by 4.2 percent. Juvenile crimes increased by 22.8 percent with 178 cases in 2007, a rise of 104 people compared with 2006. Mr Cheong said the authorities would act more proactively against crimes at tourist spots and strengthen the relationship between police and the public this year.
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