Crime has risen in Malibu, according to statistics recently published by the FBI. The most significant increase has been in reported cases of non-violent property crime.
According to the Malibu Patch, there were 350 reported property crimes in 2010, a considerable increase from the 279 in 2009.
These statistics come from the FBI’s Uniform Crime Report. The FBI publishes this report annually after compiling information on reported crimes from law enforcement agencies all over the United States. The information is then released to the public the following year after having been analyzed and organized.
These statistics are organized by state, region and offense. Offenses are divided into two categories: violent crime and property crime.
The offenses classified as property crime are burglary, larceny-theft, motor vehicle theft and arson.
The most significant increase in Malibu in the 2010 report was in larceny-theft, according to the Malibu Patch, from 198 in 2009 to 260.
“Larceny-theft includes incidents such as stealing from unlocked cars, grand theft from houses and shoplifting,” Sgt. Derrick Alfred said. “The numbers fluctuate from year to year, and even on a daily basis.
Alfred works with the Lost Hills Detective Bureau, whose officials check all the numbers on Malibu crime on a daily basis and then allocate the necessary resources to determine where the problem is and how to improve it.
“Larceny-theft often goes up in the summer, when Malibu has many visitors. People, tourists especially, will leave their belongings in their cars in plain sight. Criminals look for these sorts of things, and will react if they see something. They even pull on car doors to see if they’re unlocked,” he said.
In terms of violent crime, the city of Malibu has seen a slight increase, from 25 in 2009 to 26 in the latest report, according to the Malibu Patch.
Violent crime includes murder, forcible rape, robbery and aggravated assault.
The reason for this increase can be traced back to a particular incident that occurred in 2010: the death of Emily Shane. According to the Malibu Patch, Sina Khankhanian struck the girl with his car on PCH, and he has been charged with second-degree murder. The trial starts Sept. 26.
However, it is not all bad news.
Incidents of aggravated assault have decreased from 22 in 2009 to 18. Car thefts have also decreased from 20 to 17, and there were no reported arsons, according to the Malibu Patch.
“Our numbers are showing a 24.27 percent decrease for this day in 2011 for larceny-theft,” Alfred said. The bureau keeps a running total of all crime on a yearly basis, meaning that their numbers reflect the difference between this same day a year ago.
“Many theft crimes rise on an even plane with other theft crimes, but it’s hard to say for certain,” he replied when asked about the potential for other types of crime to rise simultaneously. “However crimes such as aggravated assault do not tend to rise with property crimes.”
The main issue is carelessness. “A lot of the theft that we have could be prevented,” Alfred said. By leaving valuable possessions out in the open, or not taking care to lock up, larceny-theft is facilitated.
Though crime has risen, the overall level of safety of the Malibu community remains stable.
