THE Guyana Police Force (GPF) has recorded a 19 per cent decrease in serious crimes for the year 2022 when compared to 2021.

This was revealed on Tuesday by Crime Chief, Deputy Commissioner (Law Enforcement), Wendell Blanhum, when the Force presented its policing plans for the upcoming Christmas season.

During his address at the event, which was held at the Police Officers Mess Hall, at Eve Leary, Blanhum said that there was a 19 per cent decrease in serious crimes recorded for the period January 1, 2022, to November 13, 2022.

This decrease, he said, translates to some 331 less serious crimes being recorded for the year when compared to the same period in 2021.

He noted that while break and enter and larceny is the most prevalent offence in Guyana, these cases declined by 23 per cent, which translates to 134 fewer cases during the aforementioned period.

“This decreasing trend was also observed for offences such as murder, rape and all four categories of robberies,” Blanhum said.

Providing a breakdown of the number of serious crimes committed in each region, the crime chief stated that while there are 12 regional divisions, Regional Division 4 ‘A’ (Georgetown) accounted for the majority of the crimes. He said that 24 per cent of the country’s serious crimes were committed in this division.

To this end, he noted that this is a common trend due to the large number of persons residing in this region, which is referred to as the commercial hub.

He noted that these determinants are important when considering the crime situation in the regional division.

Significantly, Blanhum highlighted that for the last five years, the highest number of cannabis seizures was recorded in 2022.

He revealed that some 61 kilogrammes, which amounts to over 1,600 pounds of cannabis, were seized by the Guyana Police Force.

Additionally, the Force was able to eradicate some 61 and a half acres of cannabis for the year thus far, he said.

As it relates to the police’s drug interdiction efforts, he mentioned that 2022 also accounted for the seizure of in excess of 293 kilogrammes of cocaine.

This figure represents the third highest seizure over the five-year period with the highest being in 2021 when 536 kilogrammes were seized.

Meanwhile, Blanhum said that based on the data compiled, a downward trend for serious crimes committed from the year 2015 to 2022 can be seen.

“It is significant to note that there were 2,528 less serious crimes recorded for the year 2022 when compared with the year 2013,” he said.

In relation to the number of murders committed over a 10-year period (2013-2022), the data confirms that there was a fluctuation in this regard with peaks in the year 2020 when 157 murders were recorded.

However, it can be noted that there has been a steady decline in the number of murders since then with some 108 cases recorded in 2022.

Blanhum revealed that this is the lowest number of murders recorded for the ten-year period.

As it relates to where these murders were committed, he said that Regional Division 4 ‘A’ topped the list with 16 per cent, followed by Regions Seven and Six respectively.

Blanhum stated that several strategies were used to arrive at this significant decrease in serious crimes. These include the use of confidential informants, CCTV footage and anti-crime patrols.