This chapter explores the variation of both reported crime incidence and detection rates in the different Garda administrative regions in 2019.

The recorded crime rate is the number of recorded crime incidents relative to the population, expressed as a rate per 100,000 people. Figures are based on 2019 resident population estimates for each region.

The crime incident detection rate is the number of detected incidents divided by the number of recorded incidents. A detected incident means at least one suspected offender has been sanctioned.

Dublin, as capital city and largest urban centre, is significantly more urban in character than other regions, and also welcomes significant numbers of non-resident visitors during daytime (work, public and retail services, tourism) and at night (night-time economy). These characteristics should be considered in the analysis which follows.

The recorded crime rate for Group 01 (Homicide) in Ireland in 2019 was 1.1 incidents per 100,000 people. The rate for homicides in 2019 was higher in Dublin Metropolitan (1.6 per 100,000 people) than outside Dublin Metropolitan (0.9 per 100,000 people). See Table 4.1.

The recorded crime rate for Group 02 (Sexual offences) in 2019 was 67.5 incidents per 100,000 people, and was highest in the Dublin Metropolitan Region (76.3 per 100,000 people). Detection rates for sexual offences reported in 2019 were highest in the Southern Region (17.8%), and lowest in the North Western Region (8.8%). See Table 4.1.

The recorded crime rate for 2019 was considerably higher in Dublin Metropolitan than the rate outside Dublin Metropolitan in a number of crime groups, most notably in Group 06 (Robbery, extortion and hijacking offences) where the rate in Dublin Metropolitan (115.7 per 100,000 people) was more than five times the rate outside Dublin Metropolitan (21.1 per 100,000 people), and in Group 08 (Theft and related offences) where the Dublin Metropolitan rate (2,685.8 per 100,000 people) was more than three times the rate outside Dublin Metropolitan (881.6 per 100,000 people). See Table 4.1 and Figure 4.1.

The recorded crime rate for Group 07 (Burglary and related offences) was more than twice as high in Dublin Metropolitan (560.5 per 100,000 people) than outside Dublin Metropolitan (255.1 per 100,000 people), while the rate for Group 12 (Damage to property and to the environment) was almost twice as high in Dublin Metropolitan (642.9 per 100,000 people) than outside Dublin Metropolitan (368.4 per 100,000 people). See Table 4.1 and Figure 4.1.

Detection rates were generally lower in the Dublin Metropolitan Region than in the rest of the country, most notably for Group 03 (Attempts/threats to murder, assaults, harassments and related offences) where a detection rate of 20.4% in Dublin compared with a rate of 39.5% outside Dublin, and for Group 06 (Robbery, extortion and hijacking offences) where a detection rate of 21.1% in Dublin compared with a rate of 37.5% outside Dublin. See Figure 4.2.