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9 November 2009
Crime including murder and theft dropped by nearly a fifth in the first nine months of 2009 compared to the average for the same period in the preceding two years, the Dubai police chief said on Sunday.
He attributed the drop to new policing plans and the creation of a department with the specific charge of drawing up crime prevention programmes.
Lieutenant General Dhahi Khalfan Tamim, Commander-in-Chief of Dubai Police, said 762 serious crimes were reported in Dubai until the end of September 2009. The corresponding numbers were 943 in 2008 and 891 in 2007.
Brigadier Khalil Al Mansouri, Director of General Department of Criminal Investigation, said measures including the creation of the Anti-crime Department, implementation of security programmes and sting operations had helped reduce serious crime.
“We have generalised Kish Harami programme, implemented (first) in the Bur Dubai police station, at all police stations following great success in fighting crimes that caused us headaches in the past,” Mansouri said.
Tamim said Dubai Police has also improved crime investigation and focussed on preventive measures and monitoring suspects. The police has determined ‘hot’ areas, or places where serious crimes occur more often.
“The drop in reported crimes were in police stations including Bur Dubai, Al Rashidiya and Jebel Ali,” Tamim said.
“Until the end of the last quarter of the current year, 108 crimes were reported at Bur Dubai Police station compared to 189 in the year 2008.
“Al Rashidiya police station recorded 64 in the year 2009 compared to 111 in the year 2008, while in Jebel Ali 45 crimes were reported compared to 110 in the year 2008.”
He said statistics on the number of dud cheque cases were not available.
“The police has nothing to do with dud cheques and (for) disputes that arise between the parties, there is a specialised committee to look into (such) cases,” Tamim said.
