Believe It Or Not, Malta’s Crime Rate Has Dropped To Lowest Seen In Two Decades
The CrimeMalta Observatory’s Annual Crime Review of 2022 was released – and, contrary to the perception many feel on the island, the statistics show a significant overall drop of 5.4% from 2021.
Interestingly, this review takes into account population growth, as well as calculating the number of specific type crimes and where the crimes are happening in Malta.
Although this may seem confusing when considering recent events and public sentiment, this report provides important details to explain these numbers.
1. The COVID-19 years and a growing population
It is worth noting the two obvious factors which must be mentioned: the infamous pandemic years and the fact that the population has increased dramatically over the past twenty years.
These factors were considered in the collection of the statistics with population fluctuation calculated.
2. An increase in Domestic Violence in Malta in 2022
However, what is really interesting is a significant rise in domestic violence cases brought to the courts with a dramatic increase of 5%, which is becoming increasingly more apparent due to recent events, especially with crimes targeted towards women.
Homicide rates have stayed quite stagnant, at an average of 1.7% between the years of 2004 and 2022.
And crimes such as fraud, violent crimes and arson decreased in 2022, whilst theft and bodily harm rose when compared to 2021.
3. Localities and their crime rates in 2022
Some specific areas – mainly in the east of Malta – saw an increase in crime over the years.
The localities of Valletta, Floriana and Bormla all saw slight increases in crime, as well as more touristic areas such as St Julians.
You can check out the full report by following this link.
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