THE crime rate nationwide dropped to 61 percent since the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) was implemented due to the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) pandemic, a police official said on Saturday.
Citing a Philippine National Police (PNP) report, Lt. Gen. Guillermo Eleazar, concurrent commander of the Joint Task Force Covid Shield since March 17, said Luzon recorded a 67 percent drop in crime rate, Visayas, 58 percent; and Mindanao, 51 percent.
Eleazar also said that the number of quarantine violators went down significantly in the past days as police shifted its strategy to arrest from mere warning.
Since April 23, Eleazar said that the number of violators no longer breached 2,000.
Moreover, a total of 156,704 quarantine violators have been recorded since March 17 nationwide, according to the PNP.