THE Guyana Police Force (GPF), yesterday, reported an overall increase of six percent in serious crimes at the end of August 2013, in comparison to the same period in 2012.
The total number of reports of such offences, made between January 1 and August 31, 2013, was 2,658, as compared to 2,503 for the 2012 period.
The offences monitored include murder,

robbery under arms, robbery with violence, larceny from the person, break and enter and larceny, burglary, rape and kidnapping.
The GPF said 85 murders were recorded at the end of August 2013 as against 82 in 2012, four percent more. Of the 85 this year, 35 were of the disorderly type, 14 committed during armed robberies, one execution type and 13 domestic related, while the other 22 are, so far, not categorised.
At the end of August 2013, robbery under arms had risen by three percent, with 692 reports, compared to 672 for 2012. The statistics indicate an increase of 10 percent in the number involving the use of firearms and a seven percent decrease in those where weapons other than guns were used by the robbers.

Road fatalities
Meanwhile, in relation to traffic, there have been two more road fatalities at the end of August 2013, in comparison to the same 2012 period, with 67 occurring as a result of 64 accidents this year, compared to 65 from 61 accidents last year.
January 1 to August 31, 2013 saw less of the other categories of traffic accidents, described as serious, minor and causing damage.
So far, pedestrians have been the main road users affected, with 24 of them having lost their lives at the end of August 2013. In addition, 11 motorcyclists, 10 pedal cyclists, eight drivers of motor vehicles, two pillion riders and 12 passengers in vehicles were killed.
The Police said speeding continues to be a major contributing factor to fatalities and was the cause of 48 of the 64 recorded at the end of August 2013.
Police traffic enforcement from January to August 2013 resulted in 57,372 cases being made against errant motorists, of which 14,824 were for speeding.