I'm a criminologist by training, and crime numbers are pretty much anything you want them to be.
For example: I had to write a 20 page academic paper, and I just started 3 days before it was due. I never had time to do real research, and my TA doesn't have the time to actually check everyone's sources.
Did you know that by gaming the numbers, I can literally prove that arson reduces murder? If someone burns down a house with a person inside, you can either tally that as 1 count of arson, 1 count of murder, or one count of arson and murder! Fudge the numbers a bit, and suddenly, arson reduces murder!
Police around the world are doing this, so are researchers and journalists. I personally don't put much into crime numbers. I make up this crap all the time! And if you really read closely, you can sometimes feel (but can't prove), that the data analysis in some academic journals have been fudged.
Which is why I have to say, my latest research shows that paying me money is going to reduce the odds of you getting mugged
Please send your money to my bank account, and literally, the odds of you being a victim of crime will go down, like instantly!