After Covid, crime swells in New Zealand’s empty city centres | The Guardian news (unofficial)

After Covid, crime swells in New Zealand’s empty city centres

In downtown Auckland, violent crime rates are up 30% from pre-pandemic levels, while shootings in Wellington have left residents shakenIn the early evening, light leeches quickly from Auckland’s central business district, and the people follow. Offices regurgitate workers on to the streets, but their numbers are still thin – of the thousands sent to work from home, many have yet to return. Shopfronts on Queen Street, the main shopping artery, are pockmarked by For Lease signs. By late evening, the street is deserted. On many shop windows, owners have rolled down steel grates.Already emptied out by Covid-19, some of New Zealand’s cities are now facing a spike in crime. Police data released to RNZ indicated violent crime rates in Auckland, the largest city, were up 30% from pre-pandemic levels, and remained steady compared to the year before – despite months of lockdown keeping people indoors. In Wellington, recent shootings left some residents shaken. A series of “ram-raids”, where offenders drive cars into glass shopfronts and rob them, have dominated the headlines. The age of some alleged offenders has come as a particular shock: police report apprehending children as young as 11 behind the wheels of stolen cars. Continue reading...

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