According to Statistics Canada's latest measure, Victoria has the highest level of crime severity of any place in B.C. that is managed by a municipal police force.
“The 2023 Statistics Canada data emphasizes the unique challenges we face: Victoria has high urban density, more social disorder concerns and a population with higher needs when compared to the surrounding primarily suburban municipalities,” said Victoria Police Chief Del Manak in a news release.
The statistics use a Crime Severity Index (CSI) that weights crimes based on seriousness as well as volume, with offences such as murder and sexual assault being weighted higher than things like petty theft and disturbing the peace. The base index for comparison was set at 100 for the Canada as a whole in 2006. The number for Canada nationally in 2023 was 80.5.
The overall CSI for the Victoria metropolitan area — including much of Greater Victoria — sits at 79.9, which is below the B.C. average of 104, but still represents a seven per cent increase compared to 2022. The CSI for just the City of Victoria in 2023 was 171, a 10.7 per cent jump from 2022. Oak Bay, meanwhile, had the lowest CSI, at 30, a roughly 3 per cent increase compared to 2022.
"We must continue to work together with our community partners and all levels of government to reduce Victoria’s Crime Severity Index,” Manak said in the news release.
