Saskatoon police confirm uptick in violent crime continued through first half of 2024

Violent crime in Saskatoon was up by over 10 per cent year-over-year in the second quarter of 2024, according to new data from the Saskatoon police.

The update from police Chief Cameron McBride’s office before the board of police commissioner’s meeting next week confirms the uptick in violent crimes like homicides, kidnapping, stalking and robbery seen at the beginning of the year have continued.

There were five additional homicides since the police service last reported to the commission, bringing the total to 11 so far this year, compared to six in the first half of 2023.

In three of those killings, no one has yet been charged. The first involved an April 15 assault on a 30-year-old man at a home near Confederation Mall who later died of his injuries.

The next day, a 25-year-old man was fatally shot in the 200 block of Avenue O South, and in June a 66-year-old disabled group home resident was beaten just outside Fairhaven School, later succumbing to his injuries.

No suspects have been charged in any of those cases.

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Police are still calling for Fairhaven residents who live near the school to come forward with information, hoping someone will offer video from their home surveillance cameras that will help identify a suspect.

The downward trend in property crime continued through the first half of the year, according to the office of the police chief, which reported a nearly 11 per cent reduction in reported incidents.

Police reported significant reductions in non-residential break-ins, vehicle theft, graffiti, and theft over $5,000 in the first half of the year compared to 2023 — with over 1,000 fewer incidents of property crime reported year-over-year.

Charges for possession of controlled drugs were up almost 14 per cent this year, police said, while officers issued about 18 per cent fewer tickets for traffic violations.

Read the full report from McBride’s office here.