The Bermuda Police Service (BPS) 2022 Crime Statistics are now available to the public.

The figures show there were 2,902 offences in 2022 as compared with 3,165 offences in 2021. That reflects a decrease of 263 or 8.3%, year over year.

Of note, this also represents the fourth consecutive yearly decrease from a high of 3,694 offences back in 2018.

That notwithstanding, crimes against the person were up in 2022. Conversely, there was a decrease in crimes against property.

Also reflecting decreases were crimes against the community and offences of anti-social behaviour. However, this was due in the main to the existence of COVID regulations.

The 2022 crime figures reveal there were 9 murders that year.

Five of these unfortunate incidents were firearms related, three of them involved the use of bladed articles. One person died following a physical assault.

Crimes against the person increased from 579 in 2021 to 693 in 2022.

In 2022, there were 11 road traffic fatalities, while 132 people were seriously injured in road traffic collisions. The vast majority of traffic collisions on our roads are due to impaired driving and speed. While the BPS is working assiduously to address the incidence of road traffic collisions, as evidenced by the 9,233 traffic tickets issued in 2022, the public must do its part by exercising greater caution when operating a vehicle and not engaging in driving whilst impaired.

Addressing the 2022 crime statistics, Darrin Simons, Commissioner of Police stated, “While there have been increases in some categories, the fact remains that overall, crime was down in 2022. Admittedly, COVID regulations would have had an influence on the figures.”

“However, despite the challenges highlighted here, your Bermuda Police Service continues its efforts, unabated, to maintain this downward trend. We may not get it right all the time, but we seek to ensure that we do get it right the majority of the time.”

“What will aid in making that effort successful is your continued support. We thank the public for continuing to hold us accountable, as we perform our duties in meeting our mandate of making Bermuda safer.”

“As I have often said, the community is the police and the police is the community. It is through this partnership that we will continue to ensure Bermuda’s reputation as a safe jurisdiction.”

The BPS 2022 Crime Statistics can now be viewed here.