BACOLOD City — Focus crime incidents across the Negros Island Region (NIR) dropped to their lowest level this year in May, with police recording only 62 cases, a development authorities attributed to intensified anti-criminality operations and stronger community partnerships.
Data released by the Police Regional Office-Negros Island Region (PRO-NIR) showed that focus crime incidents steadily declined over the past two months after peaking in March, signaling what police officials described as a significant improvement in the region’s peace and order situation.
Focus crimes include physical injuries, murder, homicide, rape, robbery, theft, car theft, motorcycle theft, cybercrime, and kidnapping.
Records from the Regional Investigation and Detective Management Division showed that focus crime incidents increased from 77 cases in January to 81 in February before reaching a high of 93 cases in March. The number dropped to 76 in April and further declined to 62 in May—the lowest monthly total recorded during the first five months of 2026.
The latest figure also marked a substantial improvement compared with the same period last year. In May 2025, authorities recorded 98 focus crime incidents. This year’s total of 62 cases reflected a decrease of 36 incidents, or nearly 37 percent.
Several major crime categories posted significant reductions.
Rape cases registered one of the steepest declines, dropping from 31 incidents in May last year to only nine this year. Cases of physical injuries also fell sharply from 10 incidents to three.
Theft cases decreased from 18 to 10, while robbery incidents dropped from seven to six. Particularly noteworthy was the absence of motor vehicle carnapping cases, with police recording zero incidents in May compared with four cases during the same period in 2025.
PRO-NIR attributed the gains to heightened police visibility, focused anti-criminality campaigns, enhanced intelligence-gathering efforts, and stronger collaboration with local government units, force multipliers, and community stakeholders.
Brig. Gen. Romano Cardiño, acting regional director of PRO-NIR, said the downward trend demonstrates the effectiveness of the region’s crime prevention and law enforcement initiatives.
“The steady decline in focus crime incidents, culminating in the lowest figure recorded in May, demonstrates that our intensified anti-criminality campaigns, sustained police presence, and strong collaboration with our communities are producing tangible results,” Cardiño said.
He added that while there is still work to be done, the recent gains serve as motivation to further strengthen efforts aimed at protecting communities and maintaining public safety across the region./PN
