Police: Violent crimes decreased in 2012

Newport Beach saw a drop in serious and violent crime last year, a police department news release said.

Part One crime — a category including the most serious offenses like murder, rape, aggravated assault and burglary — decreased by 3.4% in 2012, while violent crime saw a 10.9% decrease, the department reported.

Property crimes dropped 3% overall; however, bike thefts were up by 18.1%, which amounted to 38 more stolen bikes.

Mail theft also saw a 35% increase, or seven additional incidents.

According to the release, the department is educating residents to help prevent those types of crimes of opportunity.

The department attributed the overall drop in crime to other ongoing outreach efforts, like Neighborhood Watch and Business Watch programs.

The department is also in the process of implementing new data collection systems, the release said.

—Jill Cowan

Twitter: @jillcowan