ILOILO – The nine-month crime volume in this province dropped by 13.8 percent, data from the Iloilo Police Provincial Office (IPPO) showed.
The police recorded 2,949 crime incidents from Jan. 1 to Sept. 20 – 472 cases less (or 13.8 percent) than the 3,421 cases recorded in the same period last year.
The crimes were a mix of murder, homicide, physical injury, rape, carnapping, and motorcycle theft.
But theft and robbery cases were up – from 50 cases last year to 83 cases this year (or a 26 percent rise).
Robbery cases rose, too – from 45 last year to 49 this year.
Police Colonel Gilbert Gorero, IPPO director, said the increase in theft and robbery was due to the negligence of the victims which were mostly establishments.
Their security measures were lax – no closed-circuit television cameras and no security guards – said Gorero.
“Unemployment due to the pandemic” was another factor, he said.
Gorero urged home owners to lock their houses before leaving.
For financial institutions, he recommended hiring security guards and having security cameras.
“We are also appealing to the public to help us prevent crimes,” Gorero added./PN
