MANILA - The Police Regional Office (PRO) 4B (Mimaropa) on Sunday reported an 11.35-percent decline in crime volume in its five provinces during the first eight months of this year compared to the same period last year.

Mimaropa covers the provinces of Mindoro Occidental, Mindoro Oriental, Marinduque, Romblon and Palawan.

Brig. Gen. Sidney Hernia, PRO-4B director, said in a statement that they recorded a total of 3,219 incidents from Jan. 1 - Aug. 31, 2022 compared to 3,631 in the same period last year, based on the Regional Investigation and Detective Management Division's report.

For the eight focus crimes (murder, homicide, physical injuries, rape, theft, robbery, carnapping, and motor theft), 514 incidents were recorded so far this year compared to 569 in the previous year, a difference of 67 or 11.77 percent of the total volume.

The crimes that showed a remarkable decrease include carnapping (100 percent), rape (27.87 percent), homicide (10 percent), and physical injuries (9.19 percent).

Hernia said the crime drop was a result of the strong partnership between the police and the community, as he noted of the people's support for the anti-criminality campaigns of the Philippine National Police (PNP).

"This only manifests that public support is an indispensable component in the success of community policing," Hernia said.

"Under our Chief, PNP's MKK=K peace and security framework reinforced by the KASIMBAYANAN (KApulisan, SIMBAhan, at PamaYANAN) program, I have directed all PNP units in the region to build stronger ties with the community, including religious sector, NGOs (non-government organizations), and other stakeholders to win the war against all forms of criminality," Hernia said. (PNA)