JAMAICA continues to see reductions in major crimes year to date, with murders decreasing by 36 per cent and shootings down 28 per cent, according to the latest statistics released by the Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF).

The January 1 to April 17, 2025 data also show a 51.4 per cent reduction in rape over the same period last year, robberies decreased from 214 to 199, but break-ins increased from 267 to 331.

Standing atop the national reductions are the police Area One — which comprise the parishes St James, Westmoreland, Hanover, and Trelawny — with 56.3 per cent and 51 per cent decreases in murders and shootings, respectively; and Area Three (Clarendon, St Elizabeth, and Manchester) with a 53.2 per cent drop in murders and 46.9 per cent reduction in robberies over the comparative periods.

The data show a continued trend in reductions in major crimes islandwide, which the Government and JCF have attributed to improved and targeted policing strategies enhanced by increased use of intelligence and technology.

Earlier this month the police reported a 35.9 per cent decline in murders between January 1 and April 5 this year, when compared to the same period in 2024.

“That is a big decline in murders. The JCF’s crime data show that 191 homicides were recorded up to April 5 and if you look at last year, January 1 to April 5, there were 298 murders. This year, we have 107 fewer than we did last year. That’s 107 less families mourning their children,” Minister of Education, Youth, Skills, and Information, Senator Dr Dana Morris Dixon said at a post-Cabinet press briefing on April 9.

“When the numbers were going up, we were all exclaiming in Jamaica, and rightly so. And as the numbers go down, we have to celebrate it, and it’s not just the homicide numbers. If we look at shootings, shootings are down by 26 per cent; rape, down by 57 per cent; and robberies are down by seven per cent,” Morris Dixon added.

She pointed out that Police Commissioner Dr Kevin Blake, in his weekly address to the JCF in the Force Orders, noted that the decrease in murders was the lowest in more than 25 years.

“Commissioner Blake also noted that the first quarter also saw the most significant drop in major crimes we’ve seen since 2001. These reductions are a result of continued investment in intelligence-led policing, technological upgrades, and strategic partnerships,” Senator Morris Dixon said.

The police commissioner had also highlighted that the first quarter of 2025 marked the sixth consecutive quarter in which murders have declined.