Overall crime rate down

But more violent crimes are on the rise so far this year in city

While the overall crime rate decreased slightly in Peterborough over the first three months of 2017, certain violent crimes - such as homicide – are on the rise.

Deputy Chief Tim Farquharson told the Peterborough Police Services Board on Wednesday that the crime rate decreased by 0.9 per cent in Peterborough in the first quarter of 2017 (compared to the first quarter of 2016).

It’s not a huge decrease: it’s 10 fewer crimes. (Police dealt with a total of 1,102 crimes, in the first quarter.)

Meanwhile, the more violent crimes are on the rise.

Farquharson told the police board there was one homicide and three attempted homicides between Jan. 1 and March 31. That’s two more such incidents compared to the first quarter of 2016.

“For us, that’s a lot,” Farquharson said.

In February, Paul Atcheson was found stabbed to death on a sidewalk on Bethune St. Bryan Townson, 35, was charged with first-degree murder; his case is still before the courts.

There were also three attempted murders, one of which involved a shooting in a rooming house on Water St. in March.

Farquharson reminded the board that there were arrests made in all four incidents.

Sexual assault rates increased too in the early part of 2017: there was a 22.9 per cent increase in incidents reported to city police.

That translates to 43 incidents of sexual assault reported in the first quarter of 2017, compared to 35 in the first quarter of 2016.

Thefts from vehicles spiked in early 2017 as well: there was a 48.4 per cent increase.

That meant 141 incidents reported to police in the first quarter of 2017 (46 more than in January, February and March of 2016).

The report to the police board also states that indecent acts increased from zero to four, in the first quarter of 2017.

Impaired driving decreased, however, from 21 incidents to 14.

Meanwhile, it seems that crime is sparse in Lakefield.

The village – which is patrolled by Peterborough Police – saw its crime rate decrease by a whopping 79.2 per cent in the first quarter of 2017.

There were only five incidents of crime reported to police in the first three months of 2017 in Lakefield (down from 24 in the same timeframe in 2016).

Those five incidents included one assault, three property crimes and one breach of a court order.

The picture is far different in Cavan Monaghan Township, which is now patrolled by city police.

The overall crime rate there increased by 40 per cent in the first quarter of 2017. That means there were 28 incidents, compared to 20 in the first three months of 2016.

Property crimes and frauds were on the rise in Cavan Monaghan, says the report.

Still, most of the crime reported to city police occurs in the city of Peterborough. Lakefield and Cavan Monaghan combined accounted for just 0.3 per cent of the overall crime investigated by the force from Jan. 1 to March 31, 2017.