The number of aggravated assaults, sexual assaults, and assaults jumped in Chatham-Kent last year compared to the year before.
Chatham-Kent police have released their Operational Support annual report and it showed that the frequency of sexual assaults increased from 74 in 2022 to 115 last year while aggravated assaults rose from nine in 2022 to 14 last year and assaults went from 467 to 581.
The number of robberies also rose from 28 to 34 last year while disturbance calls jumped from 51 to 63 during the same period.
Murders and attempted murders were down in 2023 though, with two murders and one attempted murder reported, a decrease from four murders and three attempted murders from the previous year.
Police also reported the number of weapons calls and drug calls declined from 2022 to 2023 with weapons calls decreasing by five to 32 and drug calls dropping from 152 to 104.
The data also showed that break and enters, fraud, and counterfeit money increased from 2022 to 2023 while vehicle thefts and arson dropped during the same period.
Chatham-Kent police said the fight on drugs also continued last year with 44 search warrants executed, resulting in $7.74 million worth of illegal drugs taken off the streets of Chatham-Kent, $98,000 in recovered property, and almost $70,000 in cash seized during the drug and criminal investigations. The data also showed nearly $48,000 from the proceeds of crime was forfeited while the court froze almost $84,000.
According to the police statistics, officers arrested 69 people for major drug and property crimes, laid a total of 382 charges, and seized 97 illegal guns during that time. Police noted the number of arrests last year is lower than previous years, but the number of charges laid is higher than 2022.