Azernews.Az

By Sabina Idayatova

Crime is continuously rising in Armenia with an increase recorded in the crime rate in recent months, Armenianreport.com said on September 17.

In January-July, the number of reported offenses increased by 948, or 11 percent compared to the same period of last year.

This increase is aggravated by the so-called embezzlement of private property, with the number of such cases increasing during the reporting period by 680, or 25.4 percent. Such cases make up more than one-third of all the reported offenses.

In the January-July period, there was a significant rise in the embezzlement of private property from 2005 to 2013, with the figure more than doubling to 1,729 cases. Naturally, such a sharp increase in the rate of such crimes indicates a deporable socio-economic situation in the country.

The rate of the most serious crimes in the "embezzlement of personal property" category - cases of plundering - peaked in 2009, a crisis year for Armenia, with the number of such crimes reaching 101 in January-July.

The number of thefts in January-July this year was 2,674, which is 1,435 (or almost 2.2 times) more than in the same period of 2005. Armenian citizens who see a missing purse on the street or in public transport rarely contact the police as they think it would be useless.

In January-July 2013, 772 apartment burglaries were reported, which is 440 (or 2.3 times) more than in the same period of 2005. This is the highest indicator in the past nine years.