Ups and downs
Murder rate rises 8%, but shootings drop
New York's murder rate jumped by 8% for the first six months of the year, authorities said Tuesday.
While overall crime was down by 1.8% for the year, there have been 147 murders across the city in the first six months of 2018 — 11 more than the same time last year, which was considered the safest on record for the Big Apple.
“We were sober in the realization that trying to repeat what happened in 2017 was going to be difficult,” Mayor de Blasio said at the 40th Precinct stationhouse in Mott Haven. the Bronx. “There is real work we have to do and specific things we have to address.”
“The Bronx is driving the murder year to date with 51 homicides,” NYPD Chief of Department Terence Monahan said. “We've made arrests in 33 of those cases.”
While there have been seven fewer shootings this year — 102 vs. 109 in 2017 — fatal shootings have increased, Monahan explained.
“The weird thing is there are less people being shot but more people dying after they get shot,” Monahan said. “Obviously if you get hit by a bullet, an inch can make a difference.”
“Roughly 30% of the killings are gang-related,” Monahan added.
The NYPD was increasing the number of cops in the borough to combat the problem — particularly in the 40th Precinct and the 48th Precinct in East Tremont, where most of the murders have taken place.
“The good news is that if you commit these crimes in the Bronx, there's a very good chance that the detectives are going to get you,” Monahan said.
The number of reported rapes have increased by 33% this year.
“We've been encouraging people to come out and report so when it goes up, that's actually a good thing because more people are coming forward,” Monahan said. “Especially in the domestic violence cases. Those are the ones that never come forward.”
Arrests have been made in 37% of those sex crimes, authorities said. By the end of June, there were 903 rapes reported, compared with 678 in 2017.
The department hopes a new, state-of-the-art 40th Precinct stationhouse — with an 800-square-foot space dedicated for community use — will help stop the uptick in crime.
“This is critical for neighborhood policing,” Police Commissioner James O'Neill said about the $68 million project for E. 149th St. and St. Ann's Ave. that should be completed by spring of 2021. “Neighborhood policing requires us to come together.”