Statistics released by the City of Red Deer indicate the crime rate has fallen this year.
Overall, crime is down 10.5 per cent in the city, relative to this time last year.
The largest drop came from what are referred to as persons crimes, which include homicide, robbery, sexual assaults, assault and kidnapping. Overall, crimes in that category fell by 18.2 per cent in 2013.
“It’s a good thing the crime stats have been going down throughout the three quarterly reports this year,” Red Deer city manager Craig Curtis said on Tuesday.
“We have had a crime spike in the city in 2011 and the early part of 2012.”
Property crime also fell, according to the third quarter statistics, showing a 8.3 per cent decrease.
Also down were instances of weapons charges, which fell 1.8 per cent.
“This continued downward trend is due, in part, to a council’s investment in crime and safety over the last year,” said Curtis.
“We expect to continue seeing this number decrease in the fourth quarter and into 2014 as we further explore community safety, crime prevention and policing in the coming year.”