Advertisement

We need your help now

Support from readers like you keeps The Journal open.

You are visiting us because we have something you value. Independent, unbiased news that tells the truth. Advertising revenue goes some way to support our mission, but this year it has not been enough.

If you've seen value in our reporting, please contribute what you can, so we can continue to produce accurate and meaningful journalism. For everyone who needs it.

lock your doors

There were almost 30,000 burglaries in Ireland in the first nine months of 2015

It’s not all bad news however, murder offences have fallen by almost a third.

THE RATE OF burglary in Ireland increased by almost 2,000 offences in the first nine months of 2015.

The latest crime figures released by the Central Statistics Office (CSO) deliver mixed messages as to the rates of crime in Ireland.

28,407 burglaries and related offences were committed in the first nine months of this year, a 6% increase on the 26,747 recorded over the same period in 2014. 12,688 of those crimes were committed in the Dublin area.

cso Percentage change in specific offences, first nine months of year, 2014 vs 2015 CSO CSO

Click here to view a larger image

The increased rate of such home invasions come in a year that has seen the spotlight turned on rural crime and the vulnerability of those living in isolated communities to gangs travelling from Ireland’s urban centres.

The growth in such burglary and related offences is “truly alarming” according to Eoin Dunne, managing director with PhoneWatch.

“We are urging all householders to remain vigilant, especially in the run up to Christmas, which is peak season for opportunist burglars,” said Dunne.

Other Offences

Unfortunately burglary is not the only category of crime to see a significant increase since 2014.

Sexual offences, including incidences of rape and sexual assault, increased by 14.1% to 2,262 for the first nine months of this year, an increase of 279.

Fraud and deception are also on the rise with 5,490 such offences recorded since the start of the year, an increase of 6.8%.

It’s not all bad news however.

Murder offences in Ireland have decreased by almost half so far in 2015. 54 homicides have been recorded so far this year, as opposed to 84 for the same period last year.

Robbery / Extortion decreased by 9.1% to 2,554 offences, while weapons and explosives-related crimes are down 7.3%.

Similarly drugs-related offences are on the slide with just 15,116 such crimes recorded this year, down from 15,766.

crimes Number of crimes by region, 2014 vs 2015 CSO CSO

Click here to view a larger image

As might be expected the number of offences committed overall in Dublin is more than twice the figure for any other region in the country.

99,149 crimes have been recorded in the capital so far this year, a 3.9% increase on the 95,437 seen at the same time last year.

All crime statistics are taken from official Garda records as reported by the CSO.

Read: Man who should have been in prison when murdering his ex-girlfriend’s partner given life sentence

Read: The Garda Commissioner has just met with the people behind the ‘low Garda morale’ survey

Your Voice
Readers Comments
32
    Submit a report
    Please help us understand how this comment violates our community guidelines.
    Thank you for the feedback
    Your feedback has been sent to our team for review.