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Iorio Touts 10% Drop In Crime

News Channel 8 photo by CHRIS TAYLOR

Pam Iorio talks about the state of the city.

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By VALERIE KALFRIN | The Tampa Tribune

Published: March 12, 2008

TAMPA - The city's crime rate dropped 10 percent last year and nearly 43 percent during the past five years, a decrease not seen since the 1970s, Mayor Pam Iorio said this morning.

Iorio announced the overall crime drop as part of her annual State of the City address at the Tampa Convention Center.

She highlighted two neighborhoods – East Tampa and Ybor City – as examples of the crime reduction, saying these areas recorded crime drops of 15.6 percent and 9.4 percent, respectively.

"Ybor City is safer than ever. It is blossoming. It is flourishing. It is a place to go out to dinner and have a great time," Iorio said.

The city's crime rate is calculated by totaling seven categories called Part 1 crimes that also are tracked by the FBI. These categories are murder and non-negligent manslaughter, forcible sexual offenses, aggravated assault, robbery, burglary, larceny and motor-vehicle theft.

The number of these crimes reported citywide last year was 20,350, down 10 percent from 22,627 reported in 2006, according to Tampa Police Department statistics Iorio cited today.

This is a 42.5 percent drop from 2002, when 35,380 of these crimes were reported, these statistics show.

The Tampa Police Department will release a detailed breakdown of the statistics on Thursday.

Iorio provided a detailed breakdown today of crimes reported in East Tampa and in Ybor City.

Police department statistics Iorio cited show total Part 1 crimes reported in East Tampa dropped 15.6 percent, from 3,386 in 2006 to 2,859 in 2007.

This is a 25.4 percent drop from 2002, when 3,835 of these crimes were reported.

The biggest decreases in these crimes in East Tampa were among the number of vehicles reported stolen and the number of forcible sexual offenses reported. Both categories dropped 37 percent from 2006 to 2007, these statistics show. There were 286 vehicles reported stolen last year, compared with 454 in 2006; there were 17 forcible sex offenses reported last year, compared with 27 in 2006.

Homicides and the number of burglaries reported both increased in East Tampa. Last year, there were six homicides, an increase of 20 percent from five in 2006. The number of burglaries reported rose 2.7 percent, from 737 in 2006 to 757 in 2007, these statistics show.

Other crimes dropped. Reported aggravated assaults declined 8.6 percent, from 430 in 2006 to 393 in 2007. Reported robberies dropped 16.5 percent, from 237 to 198. Reported larcenies dropped 19.7 percent, from 1,496 to 1,202, these statistics show.

In Ybor City, the total number of Part 1 crimes reported dropped 9.4 percent, from 360 in 2006 to 326 in 2007, police department statistics show.

This is a 71.6 percent drop from 2002, when 1,148 Part 1 crimes were reported in Ybor City, these statistics show.

The biggest decrease in these crimes in Ybor City was in vehicles reported stolen. Statistics show there were 27 reported vehicle thefts in Ybor City last year, compared with 54 in 2006, a decline of 50 percent.

The number of larcenies reported rose 9.6 percent, from 187 in 2006 to 205 in 2007, statistics show.

The number of homicides and forcible sexual offenses reported did not change. In 2006 and in 2007, there was one homicide reported in Ybor City and 3 forcible sex offenses, these statistics show.

Other significant crime drops occurred in the number of reported burglaries, aggravated assaults and larcenies. Reported burglaries dropped 38.9 percent, from 36 in 2006 to 22 in 2007. Reported aggravated assaults dropped 20.4 percent, from 49 in 2006 to 39 in 2007. Reported robberies dropped 3.3 percent, from 30 in 2006 to 29 in 2007, these statistics show.

Reporter Valerie Kalfrin can be reached at (813) 259-7800 or vkalfrin@tampatrib.com.

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