Crime and Punishment, Juvenile Crime getting better? (from 2001 to 2009)

The case of juvenile Crime has been increasing recently from 2002. In 2001 the number of criminal case is reported to be 29,077 however it sparked a 9.95% increase in 2002 to 31,971. Despite the jump, a police statement said the figures were the second lowest of the past 15 years. However, crimes related to robbery have showed the most significant increase of 62.1% in 2001.

However, the crime situation registered an improvement in 2007. Overall crime reported in 2007 fell from 33,263 to 32,796 cases when compared to 2006. Overall crime rate also fell from 756 to 715 per 100,000-population in 2007, which was the third-lowest in 20 years. Housebreaking and related crimes fell, from 1201 cases to 926 cases. In particular, the offence of housebreaking registered only 866 cases, which is the lowest in the last 20 years. Theft and related crime, which generally constitute more than half of overall crime each year, fell for the second year running from 20,301 to 19,556 cases in 2007. Which compared to 2001 has show significant improvement.

The number of arrests made by the Police increased from 19,639 to 20,107. For youth arrests, a total of 4,526 youths were arrested for crime in 2007, as compared to 4,280 in 2006. Five out of every ten youths arrested were involved in shop theft, other theft or rioting. Hence it rose to concerns of the police about the increase crime cases related to youth.

Overall crime recorded a marginal increase of 1% to 33,113 cases from 32,796 cases in 2007. The overall crime rate registered a notable decrease in 2008 – the second lowest for the past two decades. 2008 also saw the offence of housebreaking, which registered 836 cases, registering the lowest figure in the past two decades.

Violent Property Crimes, which are made up primarily of robbery cases, decreased to 962 cases in 2008 from 1,027 cases in 2007. This category refers to crimes which involve the taking of money or property by force or threat of force against the victim. Notably, there were 24 serial offenders arrested in 2008 compared to seven in 2007. The 24 serial offenders committed at least 75 robbery cases either alone or in groups at various premises type, including streets, void decks, lifts, taxis and convenience stores.

Housebreaking and Related Crimes fell to 898 cases in 2008 from 926 cases in 2007. Significantly, a total of 28 serial offenders were arrested in 2008, marking a 56% increase (or +10 persons) from the previous year. They were responsible for at least 211 cases of housebreaking.

Commercial Crimes, comprising mainly cheating and related offences, registered a drop to 3,488 cases in 2008 compared to the 3,565 cases in 2007.
Miscellaneous Crimes, which comprise various offences such as vandalism, trespassing and disorderly behavior, registered 3,454 cases in 2008, a decrease from 3,609 cases in 2007.

Crimes against Persons, which refers to crimes where the victim is an individual and suffers bodily harm as a result of the crime, increased in 2008, with 4,393 cases compared to 4,113 in 2007. The increase can be attributed to more cases of Criminal Force/Assault (increase of 169 cases), and Statutory Rape/Carnal Connection (increase of 94 cases). Notably, murder, which also falls under this category, also rose from 18 to 25 cases in 2008, all of which were isolated and unrelated.

However, it is significant to note that the two major offences of outrage of modesty and rioting, under the crime class of Crimes against Persons, fell by 103 and 15 cases respectively.
Theft and Related Crimes registered 19,918 cases in 2008, an increase from the 19,556 cases in 2007. The major sub-categories which saw increases were motor vehicle theft, theft of bicycles, theft of motor vehicle component parts, theft from motor vehicles, shop theft and theft in dwelling.

The overall crime situation in Singapore remains under control for 2009, with the number of overall crime cases decreasing by 0.4% as compared to the previous year. Four of the six crime classes1 recorded decreases in 2009 vis-à-vis last year, with significant decreases noted for Violent Property Crimes, a 22.1% decrease and Miscellaneous Crimes, an 11.3% decrease.


Crimes against Persons, which refers to crimes where the victim suffers bodily harm as a result of the crime, fell in 2009, with 4,370 cases compared to 4,393 in 2008. The decrease can be attributed mainly to a fall in the number of murder and rioting cases recorded in 2009 as compared to 2008, from 25 to 19 cases (or -24%) and 358 to 283 cases (or -20.9%) respectively.

Violent Property Crimes, which refers to crimes which involve the taking of money or property by force or threat of force, decreased to 749 cases in 2009 from 962 cases in 2008. The decrease can be attributed mainly to a fall in the number of robbery cases recorded in 2009 as compared to 2008, from 929 to 713 cases (or -23.3%).

Commercial Crimes, comprising mainly cheating and related offences, registered a drop to 3,357 cases in 2009 compared to the 3,488 cases in 2008. This is largely due to the successful efforts of the police in raising public awareness against the various types of cheating scams complemented by the support of various stakeholders such as banks and financial institutions in combating such scams.

Miscellaneous Crimes registered 3,064 cases in 2009, a decrease from 3,454 cases in 2008. Decreases were registered in various offences such as affray, disorderly behavior and trespassing.

Two of the six crime classes registered increases in 2009 compared to 2008. They are namely:

Housebreaking and Related Crimes increased to 1,026 cases in 2009 from a record low of 898 cases in 2008. The rise in cases is largely attributed to break-ins at HDB residential units, where many units were secured with poor quality locks that could be easily cut opened and at education/care centers, where some were not secured with security alarm systems. Nevertheless, a total of 25 serial offenders responsible for at least 261 cases of housebreaking were also arrested in 2009.

Theft and Related Crimes registered 20,402 cases in 2009, an increase from the 19,918 cases in 2008. The main sub-categories which saw increases within this Crime Class were bicycle theft, shop theft and theft in public areas.

The Police will continue to adopt a holistic view to keep crime under control. Apart from rigorous enforcement, community engagement remains an important component in the overall strategy to combat crime.

Police will also continue to enhance our investigative and law enforcement capabilities in our fight against crime. In addition to leveraging on technology and forensic evidence in crime solving, Police also works closely with other agencies to holistically tackle crime. This close collaboration contributed to the successful dragnet operation conducted in Geylang in January 2010, where 170 persons were arrested for various criminal offences. Director of the Criminal Investigation Department, Senior Assistant Commissioner Ng Boon Gay added, “We strive to constantly enhance our enforcement and investigative capabilities to suit the needs of the times. For example, the recently launched Casino Crime Investigation Branch (CCIB) will work closely with other existing specialist investigation units and the relevant police Land Divisions towards a crime free gaming environment when the casinos open their doors."

For maximum public outreach, Police will continue to explore new avenues such as leveraging on new media channels like online forums, the SPF Facebook, YouTube, and Razor TV ‘i-witness’ program.

Director of Public Affairs, Assistant Commissioner Ng Guat Ting said, “Singapore remains a safe place to live and work in but we need the community to continue to remain vigilant and to work with the Police to ensure the continued safety and security of Singapore.” (Tabulated crime data below)

Breakdown of Overall Crime in 2008/ 2009

--------------------------------------2008------2009------(-/+)--------%
OVERALL CRIME------------------33,113---32,968---(-145)----(-0.4)
Crimes Against Persons-------------4,393-----4,370----(-23)-----(-0.5)
Violent Property Crimes-------------962-------749-----(-213)----(-22.1)
Housebreaking and Related Crimes--898-----1,026----(128)-----(14.3)
Theft and Related Crimes-----------19,918----20,402---(484)-----(2.4)
Commercial Crimes-----------------3,488-----3,357-----(-131)----(-3.8)
Miscellaneous Crimes---------------3,454------3,064-----(-390)---(-11.3)

(sorry for the lousy tabulated data its suppose to be a table but this blog thingy cant draw it out....)

-Louis Gan (10s25)

4 comments:

lollollollollol said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
lollollollollol said...

I feel that such increase in crimes should not just be associated with youngsters themselves. Most people would claim that the child has been with bad peers. Yet we should also take to note other factors that have one way or another contributed to the increase of crime rates.
One of the reasons, would definitely be the lack of proper upbringing. The lack of parental guidance to lead the youngsters to the correct path is one of the crucial factors that has led them astray. Perhaps, the increasing pressure of the society has made most middle classed or higher families to pursue a dual income system so as to handle the rising prices around Singapore and keep up with expenditure. Thus, with both parents in workforce, it directly reduces the amount of time that they can use to instill better values into their children.
Of course, the lack of proper upbringing has caused the youngsters to become, one way or another, more rebellious and audacious. As seen in the report, the amount of Violent Property Crimes has increased significantly. It can be viewed that the youngsters seems to think that they can get quick money and still get away with it.
-Khiu Wen Jie

Eliza Isa said...

I feel that youth alone should not be held accountable for the rising number of crimes committed. It is true that they are the ones who are committing the crimes but there could be many other factors resulting these people from committing such crimes.
For instance, one reason why they commit crime could be due to negative influences from the media. The media glorifies wrongdoings in some of their content. An example would be in movies such as "Kick-ass" where killing and the great use of violence is seen as a norm, acceptable in society. Other negative ideas could be passed on as well such as committing crimes which would influence the youths of today to commit even more crimes.
Other factors that could contribute to this problem could be the role played by their parents as well as peer pressure in an effort to come off as "cool".I think that we should play our parts to lower the crime rates here. After all, low crime doesnt mean no crime.
-Nurul Raqiah(10A07)

Eliza Isa said...

Basically,the blame is shared not only by the youths themselves but also the media, their peers and maybe their parents. This brings about the factor of influence where all these play a part in the youth's decision making and perception of what is right and wrong. Firstly, parents play a key role in bringing up their children as they will produce the most direct impact towards the youth. Their children will then try to emulate whatever they do,thinking that is is proper hence a parent's attitude and behaviour can be depicted from the child itself. Peers also play a part as they also form the youth society and hence they will tend to influence each other hence forming a chain reaction. Media is also to blame for allowing easy access to unnecessary content which would only serve to give the wrong image of what 'real-life' is to these youths.Therefore,youth crimes are on the rise and the only way to reduce it is to stem the factors that affect youths from the start.
Zulhairie(10S16)