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Eamonn Farrell

Levels of recorded crime fall sharply during the Covid pandemic - except for fraud

However, the number of fraud incidents increased in the last year by more than 13% compared with the previous year.

THE LEVELS OF recorded crime have fallen sharply during the Covid-19 pandemic, according to the Central Statistics Office.

The latest figures show that the number of offences dropped, including burglary, which fell by 45%, theft, which fell by 30%, and robbery, which decreased by 26%.

The CSO published its latest Recorded Crime statistics, which covered the last year up to the end of March 2021.

There was also a decrease in the number of murders, which fell by 22%, and assaults and related offences, which dropped by 13%.

Criminal damage fell by 11%, and public order offences fell by 11.2%.

CSO crime CSO CSO

However, the number of fraud incidents increased in the last year by more than 13% compared with the previous year.

The number of incidents in categories of controlled drug offences increased by 9% and weapons and explosives offences rose by 7%.

There was also a total of 10,459 offences recorded for breaches of Covid-19 regulations during the first quarter of the year.

This is a marked increase on 1,090 such offences recorded during last year, which reflects the introduction of a new system of Fixed Payment Notices for breaches of Covid-19 regulations in December 2020.

The figure includes unpaid fines and other offences, but does not include fines which were paid.

The impact of the Covid-19 pandemic and associated lockdowns is further evident in the latest Recorded Crime statistics.

The number of criminal offences recorded by gardaí fell sharply in most crime categories.

Sexual offences dropped by just over 3% compared with last year’s figures.

Kidnapping and related offences also dropped by 17%, but the number of weapons and explosives offences increased by 7%.

Damage to property and to the environment dropped by 11%, while gangland crime was also down.

Minister for Justice Heather Humphreys said that Covid-19 continued to “significantly interrupt” crime patterns.

“The number of criminal offences recorded by An Garda Síochána has fallen sharply in most crime categories. This is welcome news,” Humphreys said.

“I would note in particular the significant decreases in burglary offences, which are down 45.4%, theft and related offences, which are down 30.7%, and robbery offences, which are down 26.4%.

“With most people spending so much time at home, shopping limited to essentials, and movement restricted to necessary travel and exercise, the opportunities available to commit such offences were obviously severely curtailed over the last year.

However, as society opens back up, I would urge the public to please exercise caution and follow the simple crime prevention rules in order to keep people safe and keep crime numbers low.

“Changes in people’s movements and activities can impact on the opportunities available to potential offenders and, in turn, the volume and types of crime being committed.

“I urge the public to report all incidents of crime to An Garda Síochána, where it will be forwarded for investigation.

“Crime incidents can be reported in the first instance to the local Garda station or, if more appropriate, the Garda Confidential Line.”

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    Mute DN
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    Jul 30th 2014, 7:27 PM

    I lived in Rotterdam for 11 months abd the Baja beach club used RFID chips for patrons and members. Keeps the trouble makers away. Only a matter of time before we’re implanted with these for everyday use like banking, social welfare etc.. George Orwell saw it coming a mile off :)

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    Mute Ryan Carroll
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    Jul 30th 2014, 7:35 PM

    George Orwell saw no such thing. He saw a mass surveillance state, not RFID chips.

    Do you really think people will agree to having stuff plugged into their body when they can get the same thing with a plastic card in their wallet? come off the f__g stage with that tin foil hat bulls!t

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    Mute DN
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    Jul 30th 2014, 8:02 PM

    B–lshit? Well people did and still do have these chip planted into their wrists. You ignorant fool! Look it up! My Orwell comment was aimed at the orwellian state which will happen someday hopefully not my lifetime. Tin foil is good for wrapping my samdwhiches. Not so good for hat making. C U Next Tuesday.

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    Mute Joseph Siddall
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    Jul 31st 2014, 2:43 AM

    Thousands of pets are already microchipped to allow cross-border travel. Very simple procedure. Unlikely to get to the human population anytime soon, but it is surely a government’s wet dream to be able to track its citizens. The old “nothing to hide – nothing to fear” malarkey. Some day, perhaps.

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    Mute Glen
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    Jul 30th 2014, 6:34 PM

    How long before humans are chipped ?

    39
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    Mute IrishGravyTrain
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    Jul 30th 2014, 6:46 PM

    Put tinfoil on your head and around your balls and you’ll be sorted.

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    Mute Glen
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    Jul 30th 2014, 6:53 PM

    Oh stop with the tin foil BS
    It’s been extremely well documented that the powers that be want to use chips in people for ID, banking, buying and selling, medical history ect. Two company’s in California have been working on the technology for years they already use it in animals
    It’s only a matter of time before it’s used in humans.

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    Mute Ablitive
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    Jul 30th 2014, 6:54 PM

    As soon as Benjamin Netanyahu and Barack Obama gives the go ahead…

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    Mute Ryan Carroll
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    Jul 30th 2014, 7:09 PM

    It being on the Alex Jones show is not the same as ”being documented”, it’s been discussed as a conceptual thing not a serious proposal, and it would never fly as a mandatory thing anyway.
    We have Micheal Myers loose in the house slashing at us with his knife, and you are worried about the boogey man in your dreams.

    The EU is not coming for you, the Bilderbergers are not coming for you, it was not a cruize missile that hit the pentagon…the only big brother threat that’s real is the NSA and the 5 eyes system.
    Calm down.

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    Mute Glen
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    Jul 30th 2014, 7:17 PM

    There are dozens of ” Alex jones types” who have written and lectured about this …. Google is your friend check out the company’s that manufacture them before making an ill-informed comments.

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    Mute Ryan Carroll
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    Jul 30th 2014, 7:33 PM

    Glen Google is not research, Generation Y seems to fatally confuse the two.

    Research is finding facts and evidence, google will get you anything but. A google search can find you ‘evidence’ to confirm any crack pot theory you like. There are 1000s of internet pages explaining in painstaking deatail what explosives were put into the towers and how, why a cruize missile hit the pentagon, that JFK was killed because he signed an executive order about gold.

    You’re getting worried about a phantom threat that does not exist.

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    Mute Niall H
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    Jul 30th 2014, 7:35 PM

    It was not a airplane that hit the pentagon either

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    Mute Ryan Carroll
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    Jul 30th 2014, 7:39 PM

    Oh dear…..

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    Mute Ryan Carroll
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    Jul 30th 2014, 8:05 PM

    The plane was seen by 100s of people with the naked eye as it clipped lights on it’s way across to hit the building.

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    Mute Niall H
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    Jul 30th 2014, 8:32 PM

    I agree with most things you say on this site Ryan as you speak a lot of sense but I honestly think you need to open your eyes on this one.

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    Mute Ryan Carroll
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    Jul 30th 2014, 8:39 PM

    Niall…people…saw…the plane…crashing …into …the building….I have a relative who personally saw the damn thing heading towards the building from their office.

    Just because it did not punch a cartoonish airplane shape into a reenforced concrete building resistant to attack (the physics of it folds the wings back into the fuselage and the fuselage is more liquid than solid when it’s crashing.

    It’s not about opening my eyes, I’m quite open, go on the appliances story, where the very same people up-ticking your conspiracy theory are down-ticking something that is factually indisputable, and you will see how open minded I am. But I’m a scientist, I believe in evidence forming a hypothesis and then further evidence leading to a logical conclusion.
    There is not a shred of evidence that anything other than a plane hit the Pentagon.
    All the red thumbs in the universe won’t change that.

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    Mute Niall H
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    Jul 31st 2014, 12:18 AM

    Well….then….maybe……I’ll……use….all….the…..full….stops….in….the….universe…

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    Mute Mark Oman
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    Jul 30th 2014, 7:19 PM

    I like chips

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    Mute Paul Roche
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    Jul 30th 2014, 10:33 PM

    It would appear that those who comment using “tinfoil hat” as a derogatory term for those who despair of the Big Brother effect on privacy really have no clue about how technology has made it easier for government to track citizens.

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    Mute Paul Carey
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    Jul 30th 2014, 6:29 PM

    Nice to know they’re ‘ensureing’.

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    Mute Niall Ó Cionnaith
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    Jul 30th 2014, 6:25 PM

    Very snazzy.

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    Mute Gerald Santucci
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    Jul 30th 2014, 6:55 PM

    These 2 EN will inform and protect the European citizens while at the same time building trust in the technology, hence supporting market take-off (which is less significant in Europe compared to other world regions). A process of 8 years that involved ALL stakehoders.

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