The Vancouver Police Department released crime statistics covering 2002 to 2025, saying violent, property and overall crime rates declined over the 23-year period.
The Story
The Vancouver Police Department has released crime statistics covering a 23-year time frame, saying overall safety in the city is the highest it’s ever been, with the announcement made nine days before Vancouver’s municipal election.
Deputy Chief Const. Howard Chow said, “Over the past number of months, there’s been considerable conversation about crime, public safety and our data.” He said the department’s figures show, “Violent crime, property crime, and overall crime rates declined from 2002 to 2025.”
Chow’s comments came alongside a response to criticism about the timing of the release. The Vancouver Police Union had endorsed a mayoral candidate for the first time in the city’s history four years earlier, backing a platform described as “to ‘ensure that the police have the resources they need’.”
Vibert Jack, litigation director for the BC Civil Liberties Association, said the VPD announcement “comes off as another political endorsement,” adding: “It undermines public trust and faith in the police for the police department to be acting that way or at least perceived to be.”
Chow acknowledged that crime so far this year has increased compared to last year. When asked about whether the statistics could influence voters, he said, “What I’m more worried about [is] people are acting and reacting and making decisions, and safety decisions on information that was not accurate,” and he pointed to crime statistics he said have been misrepresented in the media.
Pressed to identify what misinformation has been reported and by whom, Chow did not name specific outlets, politicians or social media posts. He also said the announcement is not politically motivated and tied the broader crime-rate decline to investments from municipal governments, including a “task force barrage.”
← More stories