The crime rate in Macao saw an increase of 25 percent last year, according to new Public Security Police (PSP) data reported by TDM.
The PSP said yesterday that it had handled a total of 8,190 criminal cases in 2023. The substantial increase over the preceding year is to be expected, because Covid-19 pandemic restrictions and border closures were in force in 2022.
However, the full-year total for 2023 is still 20 percent lower than the 10,000-plus cases recorded in 2019 – the last year before the pandemic struck.
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The law enforcement agency said that the most common categories of crime were burglary, assault and property damage. Burglary came out on top, with a total of 1,543 cases, or an overall increase of 70 percent year-on-year.
“Burglaries in restaurants, residential buildings, and shops increased by 30 to 90 percent respectively,” said PSP’s deputy director, Wong Wai Hong.
Fraud cases meanwhile rose by 130 percent in comparison to 2022, with a total of 453 cases.
According to Wong, the uptick in crime was mainly a result of the easing of the pandemic restrictions, the increase in visitor numbers, as well as the city’s economic recovery.
