Road accidents down but more young people dying

LAST YEAR was the second best since the island’s independence regarding road accidents, the chief of police said yesterday.
Seventy-one people were killed in road accidents in 2009 – a 13.4 per cent drop over 2008.
Over half – 54.8 per cent — of the drivers and passengers involved in the fatal accidents had not been wearing a seatbelt or crash helmet, Michalis Papageorgiou said.
And 46.5 per cent of those killed in 2009 were under the age of 25 compared to 31.7 per cent the previous year.
Papageorgiou yesterday presented the most important statistical figures of 2009 — compared to the previous year – concerning serious crime, traffic, illegal migration and discipline in the police.
The chief said serious crime had recorded a minor drop – 3.1 per cent — in 2009 though the clearance rate also went down by 3.8 per cent.
There were 19 homicides in 2009, with police resolving 12.
Most of the offences regard burglaries, theft and crime against property in general, Papageorgiou said.
He said crime is continuously evolving, possessing all modern technological means that the police did not.
He urged the state to supply the police with the necessary equipment to become more effective.
Regarding drugs, Papageorgiou said 2009 saw a drop in overall cases and people involved but warned that drugs have not decreased on the island.
Illegal migration recorded a 27 per cent drop compared to 2008, something the police puts down to the global economic crisis.
Papageorgiou said there was a 62.2 per cent rise in reports of people employing illegal migrants.
When it came to discipline within the force itself, the chief said there was no intention to show any tolerance to behaviours that offend the force.
Four police officers were suspended this year, following 15 of their colleagues in 2009.

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