The police recorded 10 child sexual abuse cases in the first half of this year, double the number compared with the same period of last year, according to crime statistics released by the Secretariat for Security through the Government Information Bureau (GCS) on Thursday.
According to GCS statement, most of the child sexual abuse cases happened in a school or family environment. The statement said that the police have strengthened measures to tackle the issue, adding that they have also launched a public awareness campaign against child porn after a number of non-resident workers who were arrested for spreading such images claimed that they had been unaware of the fact that the distribution of child porn is illegal.
In the first six months of the year, Macao’s various law enforcement agencies recorded 4,691 suspected crimes, a year-on-year decrease of 32.2 per cent.
Two homicides were recorded in the first half of year. Both were quickly solved, the statement pointed out.
The number of reported violent crimes fell 59.8 per cent year-on-year to 130 cases
The statement pointed out that the Public Security Forces’ citywide electronic surveillance system of CCTV cameras, informally known as “Eyes in the Sky”, has had a positive effect in terms of assisting the police in solving crimes much more quickly than before. There were 1,005 cases between January and June that involved the use of the “Eyes in the Sky” for investigation purposes, such as concerning violent crime and arson cases, the statement underlined.
The statement acknowledged that the COVID-19 pandemic is having a certain impact on Macao’s public security situation, such as new ways of committing fraud and new channels of trafficking in drugs. For instance, the statement pointed out that the number of recorded online fraud cases rose 42.6 per cent year-on-year in the first half of the year, such as fraudulent activities via apps involving facemask and medical product sales.
The first novel coronavirus case in Macao was confirmed in late January.
The statement stressed that overall public security in Macao “remains favourable and stable.”
(The Macau Post Daily/Macau News)
PHOTO © Joshua J. Cotten
