NEW YORK (WCBS 880) — Overall crime in New York City rose 22% last month, driven mostly by a sharp increase in shooting incidents and robberies, the NYPD announced Thursday.
According to the police department’s statistics, the two biggest crimes in May were shootings, which saw a 73% increase to 173, and robberies, which rose 46.7% to 1,182 incidents.
Police note there were also 37 murders in May 2021, which was the same as May 2020.
“NYPD cops have shown us time and again they are willing to go in harm's way on behalf of all New Yorkers,” Police Commissioner Dermot Shea said in a statement. “It is this commitment to our collective public safety — in tandem with the communities we serve — that will allow our great city to prevail in the challenges we face together.”
Of all the crimes detailed in the NYPD’s report, only burglaries saw a decline, by 21.8% as compared to last year.
Other crimes that saw an uptick were grand larceny, which increased by 35.6%, and felony assaults, which jumped 20.5% in May.
Additionally, the NYPD noted that crimes in the New York City transit system jumped 93.1% from 87 incidents in May 2020 to 168 incidents in May 2021.
In a statement, the department notes that they are preparing for the summer months and are “acutely focused on reducing violence across the five boroughs.”
“By continually scrutinizing each act of violence, NYPD commanders remain nimble in their deployment of officers to the most impacted areas of the city. At the same time, the court system’s operational capacity continues to broaden – allowing the NYPD and its prosecutorial partners to increasingly hold drivers of violence accountable through the culmination of long-term investigations,” the department said in a release.
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