During this year, 29,930 incidents of serious crimes have been reported, Professor Wasantha Athukorala of Peradeniya University’s Department of Economics said.
Professor Athukorala said that there have been 497 murders, of which 223 were due to shootings or assaults.
He said this was revealed in a survey conducted by the university.
During this period, 16,317 property-related crimes and 5,964 crimes related to people have been committed.
The survey said that 1,466 cases of vehicle theft have been reported in the past 11 months. Professor Athukorala said the majority of them are motorcycle and three-wheeler theft cases, of which 39 per cent have been reported from the Western Province, 14 per cent from the North-Western Province and 13 per cent from the Southern Province.
Among the police divisions where serious crimes have been committed, Kelaniya Police Division has recorded the highest number of crimes this year which is 2,287.
Prof. Athukorala said 2,058 crimes have been reported from Anuradhapura and 2,018 from Nugegoda.
In addition, it is stated that more than 1,000 crimes have been reported from the police divisions of Negombo, Kandy, Kurunegala, Mount Lavinia, Colombo, Ratnapura, Gampaha, Kuliyapitiya and Panadura.
During the same period, 3,596 cases of kidnapping, 6,208 incidents of break-ins, and 2,159 robberies have been reported.
Compared to 2020, the number of serious crimes in Sri Lanka has increased by 4,336 in 2021.
In 2020, 31,098 serious crimes were reported and in 2021, the number increased to 35,434.
The survey said the economic crisis in the country has been the main reason for the increase in crimes.
However, Prof. Athukorala said the full report on crimes committed in 2022 has not been completed yet.
“According to the information received, about 29,930 serious crimes have been reported. About 36% of these crimes are reported from the Western Province, 13% from the North-Western Province, 10% from the Southern Province, 9% from Sabaragamuwa and 8% from the Central Province,” he said.
