As crime rises, violent incidents decline in Halton: Police

In the first six months of 2023, crime across Halton Region jumped 5. 4 per cent compared to the previous period the year before, but violent crime fell by 4.9 per cent.

According to the latest Halton Regional Police data analysis, 535 more criminal offences were reported in the first six months of
2023 (7,616) than were recorded in the same period in 2022 (7,081).

However, violent crime offences fell from 1,343 in 2022, to 1,277 in 2023. Robberies, various forms of assault and other serious crimes ar considered violent.

Other data shows that property crime, fueled by auto thefts, increased 13.8 per cent during the period increasing to 5,380 from 4,728 incidents. Shoplifting (up 54 per cent) and break and enters (up 24 per cent) are also areas of concern to police.

At a recent meeting of the Halton Police Services Board, Chief Stephen Tanner explained that during the pandemic crimes were down but are starting to come back to “normal” levels.

The clearance rate, which compares the number of charges filed with the total number of crimes recorded, fell during this period from 43.1 per cent  to 41.4 per cent

Other data, provided by Statistics Canada, shows that Halton has the fewest personnel per capita compared to other police services in Ontario.